MAIN | By Correspondent Oct. 21, 2021

WILLEMSTAD – According to the Public Health Inspectorate, the stop of elective care by the Curaçao Medical Center (CMC) as of October 1 is not justified. Inspector General Sirving Keli informed the hospital management of the CMC about this in a letter. The CMC is waiting for feedback from the relevant authorities about the healthcare budget and does not want to respond to the letter for the time being, confirms CMC director Gilbert Martina. The funds that the Social Insurance Bank (SVB) has made available for 2021 does not cover all hospital costs. The CMC is short of more than fifty million guilders. As a result, the hospital has decided to stop the elective care of SVB patients until December. According to the Inspectorate, the discontinuation of elective care has created a situation that is unacceptable. The CMC must resume elective care for SVB patients by Monday at the latest. In a reaction, Martina says he hopes to come up with a response to the letter today.