CAY HILL--The millions of guilders in losses that St. Maarten Medical Center (SMMC) records annually are directly due to, amongst other things, the “too low tariffs” set for the institution, and more patients obtaining services at the institution.
These were amongst the factors SMMC Director Kees Klarenbeek alluded to when asked about the reasons for the huge and mounting losses annually.
The Director said the losses are due to “too low tariffs (being) below cost price and more patients (seeking services, that) bring up the deficit. To give service to a bigger number of patients, more staff is required and more medical supplies had to be bought.
He said too that there is “no inflation corrections on the tariffs, but inflation in prices to be paid for medical supplies and (partly) compensation (Cost of Living Adjustment COLA) and salaries over the years also adds to a larger deficit.”
Also to ensure continuity of service per specialist; replacement specialists have to be hired when, for example, a surgeon or anaesthesiologist goes off island.
The amount of funds that SMMC has been losing annually has been steadily increasing since 2012. In 2015, the hospital lost NAf. 10,908,000 according to figures Health Minister Emil Lee provided to Members of Parliament (MPs) during a plenary session on the draft health care ordinance recently. According to the information, SMMC earned NAf. 38,850,000 in 2015, while its expenses stood at NAf. 49,758,000, resulting in a loss of NAf. 10,908,000.
In 2014, SMMC haemorrhaged by NAf. 7,834,000, when its income was NAf. 35,881,000 and its expenses stood at NAf. 43,715,000.
In 2013, SMMC lost NAf. 5,891,000 after it raked in NAf. 33,759,000 in income and forked out NAf. 39,650,000 in expenditures.
And in 2012, the Medical Centre lost NAf. 2,652,000 after it brought in NAf. 34,194,000 in income and spent NAf. 36,846,000 in expenses.
Lee said SMMC was basically living from “cheque to cheque.” The minister plans to temporarily increase the tariffs at SMMC in an effort to alleviate the situation and more accurately reflect payment for services rendered, as this is currently lower than actual cost. The temporary increase is expected to be put in place within two months.
