CASTRIES, St Lucia, CMC:
CARIBBEAN COMMUNITY (CARICOM) governments are to launch a region-wide insurance scheme as they grapple with problems identified in a comprehensive study on the health sector of the Caribbean.
St. Kitts-Nevis Prime Minister Dr. Denzil Douglas, who has lead responsibility for health within the Caribbean, said that no time frame had been given for implementing the insurance scheme. He said it would be further discussed at the next inter-sessional summit of CARICOM leaders to be held in Trinidad and Tobago early next year.
He, however, described the proposed initiative "as one of the important decisions you can say that had been taken by the heads". Dr. Douglas said that despite efforts by the Caribbean to deal with the HIV/AIDS pandemic, the virus was taking a serious toll on young people between the ages 15 and 44.
HIGHEST CAUSE OF DEATH
"It has now emerged as the highest cause of death. If we are to arrest this, we have to focus on behavioural change," he added. "It is very sad to report to you that we have not been able to see any serious drop in the HIV cases. We still haven't seen any fall out in the number of HIV/AIDS cases in the Caribbean," he said.
Dr. Douglas said that the Caribbean had been able to get Brazil to fund anti-retroviral drugs for 500 patients, mainly from the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and also assistance from Thailand that "will be providing training and skills for health care workers". Dr. Douglas said that the leaders were happy with the recommendations of the 'Report of the Caribbean Commission on Health Development' that had been chaired by the Chancellor of the University of the West Indies, Sir George Alleyne, who is also the former head of the Pan American Health Organisation.
