Questions over private healthcare
PRIVATE healthcare arrangements for operations conducted at the hospital have long been a source of controversy.
A decade ago Health & Social Care and the Medical Specialist Group were answering questions about the operation of the private care model, how fair it was, and whether the States was using it as a cash cow.
Largely it’s a relatively simple model that works, but people forced to wait months, years even, in pain for an operation under the States contract will wonder how someone could be seen next week, by the same surgeon, in the same theatre, if they, or their insurers, are prepared to pay.
They may be surprised to learn that often the largest costs associated with a private procedure do not come from the surgeon, but the costs of using the hospital and its staff as a private patient. And as a result, accusations are made against the States that it is pursuing a much-needed revenue stream at the expense of the islander waiting under the States contract.
Lengthy waiting times for operations, although now being addressed, further complicate matters, and may force the patient to pursue the private path.
A broader point is whether the States will consider a move to mandate some new arrivals to the island, with no record of public services or social benefits contributions, to have health insurance cover to access these hospital services.