St Helena : St Helena CHANGES TO MEDICAL CHARGES FROM 1 JULY 2012
Submitted by Saint Helena Herald (Public Relations Information Office) 24.06.2012 (Article Archived on 08.07.2012)
The Health and Social Welfare Directorate has recently completed a review of medical fees and charges
CHANGES TO MEDICAL CHARGES FROM 1 JULY 2012
The Health and Social Welfare Directorate has recently completed a review of medical fees and charges. The main aim of this review was to ensure a balanced service from 1 July 2012, with those on lower incomes not being excluded from medical or dental care because of costs, and those who are able to pay for these services paying. In addition, the review has resulted in a simpler 2-tier charging system rather than the 3-tier system which has been in place for a number of years.
The first charging tier allows for persons with St Helenian status who are ordinarily resident on the Island and those returning from Ascension or the Falkland Islands who are visiting the Island, to have access to subsidised medical services. The second tier is based on full cost recovery and applies to long-term visitors and contractors who are subject to immigration control, including individuals on a contract of employment not directly linked to SHG.
These changes mean that the cost of prescriptions for residents will increase from £1.75 per item to £2.00. This increase needs to be seen against the fact that each prescription continues to be subsided by over 50%, with the average cost of a prescription actually being £4.72 per item.
Persons currently exempt from paying medical fees and charges (those receiving IRB or BIP) are not affected by these increases.
Health and Social Welfare Directorate
18 June 2012
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