~I do not intend to play politics with New General Hospital~
PHILIPSBURG:— Minister of VSA Emil Lee tells parliament that MP Mercelina referred to the BIG legislation on Monday when he called on him to have a legislation in place to allow foreign specialists to work on St. Maarten.
Lee said that a draft of the BIG legislation was prepared and that draft did not meet what St. Maarten wants and as such he sent it back to Public Health for review. What Lee did not tell Parliament is that the Department of Public Health did not work on the draft legislation, in fact the Department of Public Health did not have any input in the draft. The draft BIG legislation was prepared by the Inspectorate and when it was to be presented to healthcare stakeholders the department of Public Health and the Minister high jacked the draft and placed it in a drawer.
As for the New General Hospital (NGH) Lee said that there are a number of financiers both on Curacao and St. Maarten that are willing to invest in the construction of the hospital which the St. Maarten Medical Center (SMMC) would have to pay back. Lee further explained that the NGH has to meet JCI accreditations.
MP Mercelina also informed the Minister that he is not playing politics with the New General Hospital project but in fact that is a baby project for him since he is a doctor by profession. Mercelina asked the Minister if SMMC pay for the planned hospital if the intention then is to cut off a wing in order to get the NGH even if it is not in compliance with the agreement that was made from the inception.
Source: St. Martin News Network http://www.smn-news.com/st-maarten-st-martin-news/29077-lee-says-public-health-reviewing-big-legislation.html
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