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88sins wrote:it should be mandatory that must use public health care facilities for whatever is wrong with them.
look, a big lipped stammering donkey had a stroke, a stroke eh, & they used tax payers dollars to pay iirc upwards of 2 million for medical expenses & accommodation? yet let a child need treatment that is not available here & costing TTD $100K & see what happens. hadda jump thru a few dozen hoops & beg like a hungry dog for TTD $60K
kstt wrote:MG Man wrote:tr1ad wrote:MG Man wrote:allyuh riot yet?
no?
UDFR
brb signing online petition and driving with headlights on
*wearing red
Praying and candle vigil-ing
Ben_spanna wrote:88sins wrote:it should be mandatory that must use public health care facilities for whatever is wrong with them.
look, a big lipped stammering donkey had a stroke, a stroke eh, & they used tax payers dollars to pay iirc upwards of 2 million for medical expenses & accommodation? yet let a child need treatment that is not available here & costing TTD $100K & see what happens. hadda jump thru a few dozen hoops & beg like a hungry dog for TTD $60K
because the population does not matter
only " politicians lives matter" in this stinking a55 country!
While hundreds of millions of taxpayers’ dollars were injected into the National Oncology Centre (NOC) at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex (EWMSC) in Mt Hope with nothing to show for it, another centre is being promised in the South.
Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh said earlier this year that a decision was made to convert the Augustus Long Hospital under the South-West Regional Health Authority to a new oncology centre to mirror the St James oncology facility.
Looking back, five health ministers presided over the NOC project at Mt Hope: John Rahael, Jerry Narace, Therese Baptiste-Cornelis, Dr Fuad Khan and Terrence Deyalsingh. Yet none of them could deliver a premier cancer treatment centre.
The sod was turned for the project in 2007. Over a decade later, and after hundreds of millions of dollars down the drain, it was scrapped in 2019.
The promise of the NOC was first made by former prime minister Patrick Manning in his budget presentation in Parliament in 2003.
In 2007, under Manning, there was a sod-turning ceremony at the EWMSC.
Former health minister John Rahael estimated the project to cost some $144 million, with construction under an arrangement with the Canadian government by Canadian firm Ellis Don.
However, less than a year later, the project stalled. In 2007, a general election was called and Manning returned to office with a new Cabinet.
Several ministers
In February 2008, the new People’s National Movement health minister, Jerry Narace, said the NOC was in trouble as there were disputes on the project with two contractors, Ellis Don and another firm, Cancer Care International (CCI).
He told the Parliament then that $36 million had been spent on construction items being managed by Ellis Don, and $83 million had been spent on non-construction items by CCI, totalling about $120 million. The project was in turmoil and the contractors quit the job. It failed to move forward from 2008.
In 2010, Manning called another general election, which saw Kamla Persad-Bissessar entering office as the leader of the People’s Partnership government.
Her health minister, Therese Baptiste-Cornelis, said tenders would go out for the project’s continuation. Nothing happened. Baptiste-Cornelis was replaced by Dr Fuad Khan.
In 2012, UDeCOTT took over the project and some $152,339,414.63 was disbursed to the design consultant and contractor—Canada-based Farrow Partnership Architects.
In 2013, Khan said Farrow went bankrupt.
On September 11, 2013, Bouygues Batiment Trinidad & Tobago Construction Co Ltd. (BBTTCC) was awarded the contract to build and outfit the NOC at a cost of $445,183,891 (VAT exclusive).
There were said to be issues with obtaining the designs. In 2015, BBTTCC took over responsibility and liability for the design, construction and outfitting of minor medical equipment of the project at a revised contract sum of $465,059,791.
To outfit the health facility with major medical equipment was estimated at another $205,400,000, bringing the figure to $670,459,791.
About 25 per cent of work was done—the earth was dug up and a foundation started, with pillars erected.
In October 2016, Health Minister Terrence Deyalsingh said the country should hang its head in shame at the mismanagement of the NOC. He said the project was estimated to cost $443 million but after $300 million spent, the facility was still nowhere near completion.
In 2017, a decade since the sod was turned, the construction site for the NOC remained just that—a construction site, as the number of cancer patients in the country ballooned. In that year, Trinidad and Tobago was listed as having one of the region’s highest cancer mortality rates, according to PAHO.
The Express also reported in 2017 that no dirt was being moved, but the bill was climbing, with between $3 million and $4 million a month to keep BBTTCC on site.
From January 2015 to 2017, these monthly penalty costs accumulated to over $100 million.
Under Dr Rowley
Under the Dr Keith Rowley-led Government, a number of letters were sent to Deyalsingh, former attorney general Faris Al-Rawi and UDeCOTT by Bouygues, asking if the project would continue, and what was the way forward.
Back then, Al-Rawi led the negotiations with Bouygues.
In response to questions from the Express in 2017, Al-Rawi said Cabinet would make a decision soon on the NOC and its future.
Questioned then on the clause of the contract with Bouygues with millions owed although no work was being done, Al-Rawi said:
“The specing and scoping of the contract is critical. This is not a million-dollar contract, this is a billion-dollar contract, and therefore you had to do the entire appreciation of where we are and where we need to be.”
He noted there was a committee headed by Dr Winston Welch mandated to examine and submit a report to the Cabinet on the health sector.
“You would remember there was the Welch committee report. The Ministry of Health has been very involved, so scoping will result in significant cost savings; and then there is the bona fides of negotiation.
“So I wouldn’t say we are in a negative position, because it’s premature to say that the decision of Cabinet has been had already.
“But what I can tell you is that there will be value for money on the project, and I’m confident that the right decisions will come out of the transactions,” he said.
Asked specifically whether the arrears accumulated would be paid to Bouygues, Al-Rawi said then:
“It’s way too premature. I can’t pre-empt the Cabinet discussion, but what I can tell you is that so far on every project that we’ve managed and in particular in health, we have made massive savings on the project whilst preserving their go-ahead.”
Under Deyalsingh
Deyalsingh had told the Express in 2017 that he was aiming to deliver the project under this tenure. Asked specifically about the clause in the Bouygues contract and the millions being accumulated, Deyalsingh said: “What you are saying is correct. We have been negotiating, I have been negotiating, UDeCOTT has been negotiating since we came into office.
“The matter is now before Cabinet and Cabinet will make a final decision.”
In February 2019, Deyalsingh announced that the project was scrapped and the ministry was engaged in final stages of negotiations to settle financial claims.
In response to questions about the status of the project in the Parliament back then, Deyalsingh said the contractor, Bouygues Batiment TT Construction Company, terminated the contract, effective February 22, 2018.
He said the equipment purchased for use at the proposed Mt Hope facility would be used at various regional health authorities across the country.
Deyalsingh said the National Radiotherapy Centre in St James, which he described as “a mini-oncology centre”, is “where the bulk of the treatment would now take place”.
Asked then for the reason for the termination, Deyalsingh said he was unable to respond.
“Currently, the Ministry of Health is engaged in the final negotiation of claim settlement.
“Given the termination of the contract by Bouygues Batiment TT Construction Company, the Ministry of Health has developed a re-prioritised list of equipment to replace the proposed MRI and Pet CT, which are investigative pieces of equipment originally intended for the National Oncology Centre, and to allocate the diagnostic analysis unit in existing hospitals within the respective regional health authorities (RHAs).
“This re-purposed initiative will serve to replace existing equipment which is nearing the end of life cycle at the various hospitals,” the minister said.
Sources told the Express on Friday that these settlement claims with Bouygues were still ongoing.
assassin wrote:The National Oncology Centre was part of a national cancer treatment programme by MOH. I don't know the status of the programme and cancer rates have skyrocketed in the last decade. After 2 years of inaction by MOH, the contractor initiated formal termination of the project.
The reason for government's lack of interest in continuing the project was never stated to the public. It was linked to the fact that state medical services compete with lucrative private medical facilities.
The then AG, main negotiator, was advised heavily by friend and financier. It was expressed that government should discontinue and let private parties provide and manage specialist medical services, especially oncology services. That friend received payment from MOH as subsidised radiation therapy treatment for public clinic patients. The private facility has, in recent years, significantly expanded its equipment and services.
pugboy wrote:i know a cancer patient who spent $1m or more via a top oncologist privately
he happen to have a big govt post and after a while told her she could go public and he will organize the paperwork due to his position
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