The National Health Insurance Project has reached the final frontier, expanding its coverage to the Cayo District - which is the last to get the program.
8 providers have signed contracts with GOB, enabling them to offer primary healthcare through NHI.
Here are the highlights from today's ceremony in Belmopan - to which, we note, the media was not invited. Footage is courtesy the press office:
John Briceno - Prime Minister
"It was the belief that healthcare is not a commodity for the few but a fundamental right for all Belizeans. That idea was the National health insurance program. For a quarter of a century that pilot project in the South side of Belize City has been more than just a program, it has been a laboratory of hope, we learned lessons there, some hard, some triumphant. We learned that when you invest in primary care you save lives, we learned that when you empower local clinics and pay for performance, quality improves, we learned that the journey to universal health coverage is a marathon not a sprint. So today my friends after 25 years of running that race, that marathon we have reached the final critical mile."
Dr Deysi Mendez - Technical Advisor, NHI
"taking into account the complexity and the size and the population of the Cayo district the team said okay we need to do this in a phased manner to approach and make sure that the methodology no step is skipped and that all the details are a fair methodology for the 3 areas. So Cayo was divided in 2 phases, focusing phase 1 in Benque area in which Benque Viejo Del Carmen would have APCP and a smaller satellite in Succotz. 1 in San Ignacio town with a smaller clinic or what we call satellite clinics in Bullet Tree and Santa Familia and one clinic in Santa Elena, with a smaller clinic or satellite in Georgeville and San Antonio village. Phase 2 then focused in Belmopan, dividing Belmopan in 3 major areas. What we consider Belmopan 1, looking for a clinic that would be in the Las Flores Maya Mopan vicinity and they would have to also the responsibility to provide care for Armenia in a small clinic, 1 in Belmopan, 2 focusing on that Roaring Creek area and the communities along the highway with the satellite clinic in Valley of Peace. 1 in Belmopan, focusing on Belmopan city limits and no other satellite clinic just the city itself and 1 in Duck run and a clinic in Blackman Eddy."
Kevin Bernard - Minister of Health
"Primary healthcare ladies and gentlemen remains as the backbone of any effective health system. It is where prevention begins, where chronic diseases are managed and where families develop trust relationships with healthcare providers. And through NHI thousands of Belizeans have benefited from improved access to essential services without the burden of overwhelming out of pocket cost. The agreements signed today reinforce an important partnership, one that places patients at the center of healthcare delivery and supports our broader national vision of universal health coverage. To all of you providers signing today I thank you for your dedication and willingness to serve Belizean families. Your work contributes directly to healthier communities and a stronger nation."