N.H.I. must demonstrate quality says minister

The continuing debate over National Health Insurance may have been overshadowed this week by flying bullets, but as the southside pilot project prepares to get off the ground, many Belizeans are still waiting to be convinced that N.H.I. is the right medicine for Belize. This morning News 5’s Stewart Krohn asked Minister of Health Jose Coye if he thinks Belizeans are prepared to pay the cost of the expanded health care system.

Jose Coye

“Quite frankly, I do not expect the public to be willing to do it at this point simply because…how can we tell the public what is it that they should be spending on something which they have not yet seen. What we are saying, the government is saying, and I need to re-emphasise it, I said it last night and I’ve been saying it all week. What we need to do is to convince the people of the quality that we will be delivering and that we will have the capacity, not only to deliver the quality, at a reasonable standard, but that we’ll be able to deliver that quality at a quantity that everybody will be able to access the system to receive that quality, to receive it on the basis of equity, that it will be affordable and that we’ll be able to sustain it. that is what we need to do. We need to convince the population that we’re going to put in place a system, a new health system with the capacity to deliver that quality. When we have shown you the product or at least get you understand what the product will be, I would feel then that the public would be far more disposed to want to contribute

Coye pointed out that a healthy population is fundamental to the process of developing the economy and nation as a whole. Following the six month pilot project during which basic health services will be delivered free of charge, payroll deductions from workers and employers will finance a nation-wide N.H.I. system.