Universal Insurance Now!
Guest Opinion by J. J. Estemac
The time is upon us from the reports I have been hearing in the news media, we have a crisis in our health care system, particularly our hospitals. What if anything our elected representatives are doing to address it is anybody guess. I have not seen nor heard any workable plan presented in the legislature nor from the executive branch of government. It appears that they are all waiting for a miracle of some sort to resolve the crisis. Does any of these politicians have any imagination or do they have anyone on their staff that has enough imagination to come up with a proposal that is reasonable and achievable? Does the deJongh/Francis administration have a plan to address the problems plaguing our health care system? Where is the vision? Can we start thinking and acting outside the box?
I have proposed in the past, when we have discussed insurance in the context of the GERS, that we could be innovative and make some drastic changes if needed, to meet the situation of so many of our residents are without health insurance. I believe we can offer the same or similar health insurance to the general population under the umbrella of the GERS program. The government employees are only a segment of the population, of our small population. The broader the insurance base, the number of peoples enrolled the cost of premium could be reduced, because of the bigger pool of insured residents. Having universal insurance for all residents would certainly help the hospital with their cash flow problems. Our Health Department could maintain a prevention program to reduce the incidence of preventative illness. I believe this would be a win win solution, do you?
My proposal recommended that the GERS with its success record and accumulated experience in providing insurance and annuity to the government employees can sponsor a similar program as a business venture to insure the rest of uninsured residents. GERS would be the sponsor of the insurance plan however it would have two tiers or groups. One group of course would be the government employees and the second the private sector. Offering insurance to every resident would bring the cost of the insurance down because of the added number of insured. The insurance in the private sector could then be mandated because provision would have made to have insurance available to all. I believe we may have to make some modification of the GERS charter, but our smart attorneys can assist us with the mechanics of making the changes needed or required. GERS would then be serving our entire community not just a sector.
Can you imagine what our society would be like if the majority of the residents had health insurance and an annuity package? People would be able to get better medical treatment and would also have a retirement package to assist them in their old age. We have to stop spinning our wheels and start resolving these critical problems that afflict our community. Our elected and appointed representative in government should be expected to do better in addressing our resolvable problems. They need to have the will, energy and the creativity to resolve many our solvable problems. We, the people need bring pressure to bear on our representatives for them to be more diligent in doing the people business and not their own. As citizens we need to stand up for our rights, as part of our responsibilities in this democratic society. May Allah-God have mercy on us all that we may develop the wisdom and courage to fulfill our destiny, individually and collectively.
J. J. Estemac
CCBG
St. Thomas, VI
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