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KHMH Explains Fee Hike
Wed, February 10, 2016

As we told you last night, starting on Monday the 15 th of February the price for all non-emergency clinic services at the KHMH will increase to $25 dollars where it used cost $10 or $15 dollars per consult – between a 75% and 150% increase. Today we sat with the Financial Director of the KHMH, Norman Augustine Jr. who told us why the fees need to increase:

Norman August Jr. - Director of Finance, KHMH

"There are several areas of services that we do here at KHMH. We have several wards, we have accident and emergency, we have specialties, we have radiology and we have of course when people come in and pay their 10 dollars accident and emergency, they get their service. As you have heard before for just one drip that we place on an individual, its 24 dollars, all they are paying is 10. Generally it cost us far more than what they are paying. At the clinic, which is the specialist clinic, there are one of two that they charge 10 dollars but most of our specialist clinics is at 15 dollars. Compare that to what you would pay at the private sector. It's important for you to understand that currently that fee that they pay; 15 to 10 dollars only represent 16% of what it cost us to run that entire specialist clinic. So we are asking the general public to bear with us and work with the government in their contribution because the government is still matching a significant amount. We are asking them to pay a little bit more at 25 dollars per visit and this is elective, this is not an emergency. So you know your appointment date, you can set aside your little funds and you come in and pay your 25 dollars; which then represents 32% more or less and the government is matching that, a total of 68%. So it's not a fact that we are after the public, it's just that we're asking them to work with us, to contribute a little of what it cost them."

"Also we have announced that physiotherapy fee will be increased effective March 1st. Currently what it cost us to maintain that unit and it provides a very important function for our patience is not being adequately paid for. An introductory price some of our patience who use that fee was shocked and amazed because elsewhere when they go, they would pay about 3 or 4 times that amount. So currently it is 15 dollars for your first session and 10 dollars for subsequent sessions. We are looking at having that be at 30 dollars for your first session and 20 dollars for subsequent sessions."

Emanuel Pech

"Why was it necessary to implement this fee is it because of an increase in the number of patients that you have here? Or is it in relation to an increase in the price of some medicines that you guys bring here that you utilize, what was the need for it?"

Norman August Jr. - Director of Finance, KHMH

"Emanuel that is a very good question to highlight, why was it necessary to do that increase at this time. To be real it was necessary to have done that increase many years ago. Because from then we have been struggling being understaffed, being under resourced in the sense that several times as you know, our CT machine was down for so many months, we lost 160 thousand. Where did that money come from us to fix this machine? We had to struggle each month to put aside a little something to fix back that machine. If you do walk around, we do have infrastructural problems. Our electricity to maintain, to have the patients be comfortable, our ability to have them have the services, our staffing and of course we need to ensure that the tools, the medication, the medical supplies, the drips are in place. It's not that we just want to do it now, it's something that we should have done a long time ago."

Augustine says that with the added increase in fees they project to collect $130,000 dollars more in revenue this year. Their average expenses for the year total an estimated $37 million dollars. Of that some $22 million goes towards salaries. Also of note is that this change in financial structure comes in the wake of the recent increase in Government subvention to pay for a salary increase for the 600-plus hospital employees.

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