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Min. Lawrence faces pressure to disclose cost to taxpayers for ministerial medical bills
Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence
Public Health Minister Volda Lawrence was yesterday grilled to provide the National Assembly with the cost of medical and dental bills for Cabinet members.
People’s Progressive Party (PPP) Member of Parliament, Juan Edghill asked the Minister to inform the National Assembly as to the total cost of the medical and dental bills paid for by the Government on behalf of Members of the Cabinet, advisors, and family members for the period June 2015 to June 2018.
The Minister disclosed that after coming into office in May 2015, Government undertook to secure an insurance company to provide medical and dental coverage. The State, she indicated, paid 50% of the bill.
According to the Minister, deductions are made by the Parliament. She indicated that the Ministry of Public Health pays the expenses, and that money is then reimbursed from Parliament.
Edghill then asked, “if the state has to pay 50% could the Minister tell the House what is the sum that the state is paying 50% on?”
“At this time I don’t have that figure, but I can assure that at our next sitting I will provide it,” Lawrence stated.
The Minister said that in 2017, prior to signing on to the insurance company, some $2.4M was spent.
According to Lawrence, in 2015, Cabinet was apprised about expenditure incurred by the previous PPP administration for medical and other expenses.
She stated that they took the decision to begin a search to look at various insurance companies to provide coverage for the members of the Cabinet and their families, so that they wouldn’t place a burden on the public fund as transpired in previous years.
“Because of us taking that decision, Mr. Speaker, I am happy to report to this honourable House that as of June 2015, no request was made to the public funds for medical coverage or dental for any of our Ministers.
The same thing happened in 2016; again, there was a nil. In June of 2018, again there is a nil,” the Minister stated.
She disclosed that for medical expenses, in 2012, $37.1M was spent and then in 2013 $9.7M. Further in 2014, $47.2M. For dental expenses, the Minister stated that in 2012 it was $2.4M, $1.7M in 2013 and in 2014, $84,999.
“It is because of some of these things that we sought to go out there and get an insurance company. We came to this House and asked for consent to have the Government pay 50% and every other member covered by the policy will pay the other 50%,” Lawrence asserted.
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