People willing to have NHI that is not compulsory - Natalio D. Wheatley
He was speaking on the Speak Out BVI show aired last night November 3, 2015 on ZBVI 780 AM.
Wheatley said that he does not want a fight with the government on the NHI but rather a collaboration with them.
"I am more convicted now than I was before, having spoken to so many members of the population on the NHI... I am convicted that we are doing the right thing. It is not to stop the NHI but to have an NHI that is not compulsory."
He said the NHI Concerned Citizens and Residents Group have gotten overwhelming consensus that people are willing to have an NHI that is not compulsory.
The group on October 13, 2015 had submitted a petition with over 700 signatures to Premier Dr The Honourable D. Orlando Smith at a meeting which had been described as good natured. However, while the Premier is to formally get back to the group, he reportedly told an online publication that while there will be no halting of the NHI there are likely to be tweaks to accommodate what the petition is asking for.
"We are now in November. The NHI is slated to begin on January 1, 2015. The Premier has stated that there will be no halting but passively there will be tweaking," Wheatley said.
Potential impacts are serious
He asked persons in the territory to consider whether they would sleep well at nights knowing that people will lose their private insurance and thousands of dollars invested and also lose their jobs as a result of the NHI.
"We have to ask ourselves this question and how far are we willing to go to prevent such a circumstance," he said.
"We cannot make decisions that flagrantly disregard the impacts on people. And when I look into the eyes of the people I speak to I know that the potential impacts on them are serious. I know as well that there is a problem that has to be solved...the problem of the uninsured and this is why we spoke about collaboration."
Wheatley is adamant that there is a way to solve the problem of the uninsured while still avoiding some of the negative consequences that would come along with the NHI in its current mandatory form.
He also said matters of an individual's healthcare should be left to that individual and his or her doctor and not have the involvement of the government.
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23 Responses to “People willing to have NHI that is not compulsory - Natalio D. Wheatley ”
Huh????? What? That's no different to saying "Workers want to be paid not in accordance with market rates or their value to their employer, but rather in accordance with their bills and lifestyle.." sources say. LMAO! I don't know when these people are going to snap into reality. Insurance is not like buying pants and shirts online, it's serious business and Natalio needs to understand how these things work before spouting bulls### If it was that easy it would have been done long time. The only way systems like NHI work in small populations is for everyone to be involved. Insurance is about shared/spreading risk not just nit picking what you think you like and leaving the rest.
Can you apply this logic to to the other national insurance scheme (social security) too?
Sowande,the bridge spanning Tortola and St John I am offering it to you cheap cheap. Name your price. I am willing to throw in the BiWater shares that Fraser promised along with the computer from Fahie when it arrives.