(Barbados Nation) Minister of Health Donville Inniss has defended Government’s policy on access to free health care by non-nationals.
He told a political mass meeting at the Bay Street Esplanade last night that too many individuals had been coming into the island, using the Queen Elizabeth Hospital’s facilities and leaving without paying, thereby placing a burden on the island’s health care system.
Before a gathering ranging from toddlers to pensioners and some people with chairs and coolers in hand, Inniss noted that he had moved to correct this situation against a background of claims that he was anti-foreigner, but indicated his intentions were to ensure that Barbadians were not disadvantaged by this practice.
He promised no apologies for the action he took, adding that his policies were informed by the hospital’s 2006 regulations, introduced by the then Barbados Labour Party administration to deal with covering fees.
