The National Coalition For Health Care Reform

The National Coalition for Health Care Reform is a partnership of Bahamian citizens representing all sectors of society who are committed to improving health care services that truly incorporate the elements of the right of choice and equal access to health care services for all residents in The Bahamas; of equal importance in its endeavors is to establish a National Health Insurance (NHI) plan that is financially viable and sustainable for many years to come. The Coalition members are deeply committed toward contributing to the improvement and sustainability of health care in The Bahamas. Accordingly, the Coalition for National Health Care Reform will collaborate with government in producing a plan that is practical, efficient and minimizes the future financial burden on the people of The Bahamas.

     Background
The Bahamas Employers Confederation became involved with the National Health Insurance Coalition in February of this year. The initial members of the Coalition included the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce, the Grand Bahama Chamber of Commerce, the Bahamas Hotel Association, the Bahamas Hotel Employers Association, the Bahamas Small Business Association, and the Nassau Tourism & Development Board. A great deal of preliminary work was done, including an analysis of the Report of The Blue Ribbon Commission on National Health Insurance; compilation of local data; the establishment of a Secretariat; and the engagement of The Segal Company, a U.S. based firm to conduct a survey on the proposed NHI.

     Expansion of Coalition
On the 4th of September, the Nassau Institute organized a meeting of interested groups to discuss the NHI proposal. A number of concerns were raised at this meeting, including the fact that the country has yet to engage in a true debate and discourse on this subject as Government has not made publicly available its information and research substantiating the proposed NHI. A Steering Committee was established to emphasize the need for Government to disclose all reports and information on NHI, particularly the financial projections and economic impact reports; to shape a proactive Public Relations campaign that would, in simple language, explain the true costs and challenges inherent with Government's proposed plan; and to engage in a more legitimate consultation with Government in order to suggest alternate approaches to a better health care system. It was determined that the Steering Committee would be managed through the National Health Insurance Coalition as it had a paid consultant on staff engaged in NHI research.

Intense meetings of the Steering Committee were held that culminated on the 20th of September with a "Statement of Purpose" for the renamed "National Coalition For Health Care Reform". At its monthly Board of Directors Meeting on the 21st of September, the Bahamas Employers Confederation unanimously resolved to endorse the Statement of Purpose of the National Coalition for Health Care Reform, (NCHCR). All of the members of the original Coalition endorsed the NCHCR Statement of Purpose, and other organizations joined the Coalition. The additional members to date are the National Congress of Trade Unions, the Medical Association of the Bahamas, the Nassau Institute, the Bahamas Dental Association, the Bahamas Insurance Brokers Association, the Bahamas Motor Dealers Association, the Bahamas Manufacturers Agents and Wholesalers Association, Doctors Hospital, and Bahamas General Insurance Association.

The Chairman of the NCHCR is Dr. Robin Roberts, Chairman of the Medical Association of The Bahamas and the Vice-Chairman is J. Barrie Farrington, Chairman of the Bahamas Hotel Employers Association.

     The Way Forward
The NCHCR issued its first Press Release on the 1st of November, and has run full page advertisements in The Nassau Guardian, The Tribune, The Freeport News and Punch. The Minister of Health and National Insurance, The Hon. Dr. Bernard Nottage has agreed to meet with a delegation from the NCHCR and it is hoped that this meeting will take place sometime within the next week or two. The Coalition has established a website at bahamashealthcarereform.org where more information is available.

Train Bahamas Workforce Promotional Programme

The Government of The Bahamas continues to announce the development of large-scale anchor resort properties across the islands of The Bahamas. These large-scale, labour intensive projects have the potential of providing enormous employment and entrepreneurial opportunities for Bahamians.

The Ministry of Immigration, Labour and Training has been mandated to accelerate the rate at which Bahamians are being equipped with employable skills, which will enable them to access emerging opportunities, during both the construction and operational phases of these projects.

The "Train Bahamas Workforce Promotional Programme" is an awareness and public relations campaign, which is intended to heighten public awareness about the critical role which skills development plays in both individual and national development to create opportunities, while at the same time unveiling the Ministry's strategy for equipping recent graduates and displaced workers across The Bahamas with employability skills.

The goals of the "Train Bahamas Workforce Promotional Programme" are:

1. To promote the expansion of apprenticeship programmes;
2. To commence a phased expansion of the technical and vocational programmes presently being demanded by industry;
3. To organize relevant training programmes designed to equip Family Island high school students, recent graduates and displaced workers with the necessary skills to enable them to take advantage of employment and entrepreneurial opportunities in their respective communities;
4. To reverse the current trend which presently requires Family Island high school graduates and others to relocate to the major population centers of New Providence and Grand Bahama in order to obtain entry level technical and vocational training;
5. To bring about a greater utilization of the technical and vocational training resources already resident in Family Island communities;
6. To accelerate the delivery of technical and vocational training programmes to Family Island communities which are both accessible and cost-effective; and
7. To contribute to the economic growth of The Bahamas by ensuring the existence of a pool of skilled labour from which business and industry can recruit.

In light of the foregoing and in an effort to "open windows of opportunity" for skills training in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, the Ministry of Immigration, Labour and Training will be pleased to team up with private and public sector partners to launch this exciting "Train Bahamas Workforce Promotional Campaign".

Department of Labour Skills Data Bank

On the 3rd of November the Department of Labour officially launched its Skills Data Bank. This is an online initiative that is available on the Department of Labour's website under the heading, "Employment Exchange Services". Potential employees can register online by providing contact information and even upload their résumé. Employers can utilize this service by also registering online in order to seek job candidates for positions they have available and even upload their company logo.

Both employer and employee accounts are password protected and any information shared is through request and acceptance only. These online accounts do not require any direct contact with the Labour Department by either party. For those potential employees who want to utilize the Employment Exchange service of the Labour Department, an application can be downloaded from the website and information on the process for new applicants is provided.

This initiative is part of Bahamas Government On-Line (BGOL), which can be accessed at the web address www.bahamas.gov.bs. From the Home Page use the dropdown menu on the upper right corner of the page, "Visit a Ministry" and select "Labour, Dept. Of". When at the Department of Labour page select Employment Exchange Services from the menu on the left side of the page.

For those who have not visited the BGOL website, or have not visited the website in quite awhile, it is definitely worth checking out. New areas have been set up for several additional Government Ministries and Departments, plus Bahamian Statue Laws are now available online.

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