THIS is an open message to the new health minister. I do not want to congratulate him because what lies ahead for him is too much. I want to first remind him that the system of governance has guaranteed free medical care for every citizen. This is an impossible task to achieve even for countries that are richer and more developed than us. Therefore any effort toward this end will be futile. The substitute in this case is the option the advanced countries have resorted to: the system of medical insurance for their citizens. This kind of service is not at present adequately available in our country. The existing insurance companies are not reliable. They cannot be trusted to provide this service properly. These companies do not often insure people who are 60 years or more of age or people who may have chronic diseases. Therefore, it is imperative to find qualified insurance companies or establish stronger and more capable ones through partnerships with the private sector. There had been many cases of patients getting caught in the dispute between hospitals and insurance companies. Insurance companies should give priority to a patient's health and safety before hospital bills because medicine is a humane profession rather than a business. There is another hurdle that makes it difficult to find medical treatment for each and every citizen even with the availability of medical insurance. This is the acute shortage in the number of qualified medical doctors and beds in either the government or private hospitals, especially outside major cities and towns. This shortage can be overcome with time and determination. Therefore we should not worry too much about it. However, it is necessary to provide greater incentives to the private sector to invest more in the health sector.
