Dunkley & Ministry On GEHI Dental Coverage
[Updated] “Dental insurance coverage for Government employees has been suspended because the Government has failed to pay the premium for their coverage,” Shadow Minister of Health Senator Michael Dunkley said last night [July 8].
The Finance Ministry refuted the statement, saying “to date we have received no enquiries or been advised of concerns from civil servants on this matter.”
Senator Dunkley said: “The suspension was made by the insurer for the dental portion of the Government Employees Health Insurance plan after Government fell in arrears on premium payments to the insurer.
“The portal used to provide dentists with patient insurance coverage information shows the status of GEHI patients as “Inactive – Customer must contact their employer.”
“The ‘inactive’ status means that Government employees’ coverage has been suspended even though they’ve paid their portion of the premium through automatic deductions from their paycheques. Under the terms of GEHI, premium payments for employees are handled by the Government, as their employer.
Senator Dunkley continued: ”The Government’s failure to pay is one more real-life example of its failure to take care of the public purse, something that is affecting the lives of more and more Bermudians. Businesses are increasingly reluctant to do business with the Government because it is so late in paying its bills. Now, its own employees are paying the price.
“This amounts to a betrayal of the working trust that is supposed to exist between employer and employee, and makes the Government a hypocrite for wanting to ‘name and shame’ employers for failure to make employment tax and social insurance payments.
“The suspension occurs just weeks before the Government’s new policy forcing medical practitioners to no longer ask patients for upfront payments and to rely totally on timely payments from insurers – a plan the dental community expressed concern for given GEHI’s long history of late payments.
“The Government must step forward immediately to explain why it is not honoring its responsibility to its employees to maintain their GEHI dental coverage and what it is doing to rectify this matter immediately,” concluded Senator Dunkley.
A Ministry of Finance spokesperson responded to the Senator’s statement saying, “It is extraordinary the comment released to the public in relation to dental coverage for Government employees.
“The public should be aware that to ensure consistency and efficiency in payment processing of dental claims, an insurer was selected a few years ago to administer Government’s dental insurance programme.
“During this time the insurer and Government have had a respectable relationship and it would be extraordinary that dental coverage has been discontinued with no communication with the Government of Bermuda.
“That does not accord with our records. Also to date we have received no enquiries or been advised of concerns from civil servants on this matter.
“In ensuring that G.E.H.I. is compliant with the Upfront Payments Legislation that takes effect on August 1st, 2012, their focus is on tightening their processes, and clearing up any backlog. As such all payments will be made within the legislated thirty day time frame going forward.”
Update 11.24am: This morning the Ministry of Finance released a statement addressing what they called “concerns stemming from the rumoured suspension of Government’s dental coverage.”
The Ministry of Finance said they are moving to “reassure government employees covered by the insurance plan that coverage has not been suspended nor cancelled,” and also refuted any commentary to the contrary – calling it “regrettable and baseless”.
Is Dunkley making it up as he goes along?!?! Does he have GEHI? If not, why is he commenting?
RUFKM,
Dunkley is the Shadow Health Minister,and therefore should comment on these matters.
Whether he is correct or not remains to be seen.
Funny how the spokesman for the Ministry of Finance office never refuted the claim.. Only commented that it was extraordinary!! GEHI have always been the worst offenders when it comes to paying claims.
I went and joined the big party at southP to form the OBA, but with Dunkley still pulling the strings. I WILL NOT VOTE for OBA.
I’m OBA and tired of Dunkley. Craig you need to send him packing. He’s just causing fence sitters not to vote oba nor listen to his mouthing off constantly. Sick and tired this bye.
Really?………Now if the average ‘Joe Blow’ Business was to do this to their employees wouldn’t there be a consequence?????????
@RUFKM, he is commenting because that is his job you nitwit. As shadow ministers, they are supposed to question things that look “off” in their ministry. Otheriwse, the govt would just do whatever, without having to answer to anyone.
It is amazing how people don’t understand this concept. They sure understood it before 1998 when they were the opposition cause they were doing the EXACT same thing.
This is anecdotal…until an employee tries to use their dental insurance and it is denied, Dunkly should refrain from making these statements. The Politic season is well underway folks!
The government could be delinquent in its payment but the insurer may still be honouring policies -in effect giving the government more time to pay.
Anecdotally there are a lot of people not being paid by the government for work they’ve done – or at least taking many many months to be paid.
I think all should reserve there comments until substantial proof has been provided or someone comes ese comes forward to back up Senater Dunkley’s claims.
Is this true or is this Dunkley electioneering? If he is making baseless allegations then he needs to come with some proof!
Dunkley makes it up as he goes. Hoodwink folks to get votes.
another inside source I suspect…even if this is true…what have we become when things of this nature become a political football…..government should change from Argus to in-house….bad enough we are paying funds to a private enterprise…doubling the cost of care….this should be seem as a breach of.. privacy
Oh yeah, you really want Government handling your health insurance? How is this a breach of privacy?
@Rhonda… Actually by Governemnt outsourcing the management of the GEHI dental saves the tax payer… Why employ and train people, spen money on infrastructure when there are companies doing the job on a daily basis and can do it more efficently.
correction BF&M not Argus……
Never mind, I am sure someone will be hustling over to the insurer first thing this morning with a check to make this embarrassment disappear.
Good evening all:
On behalf of the Ministry of Finance please note the attached release in response to concerns issued in an Opposition press release regarding suspension of GEHI dental coverage.
There has been no suspension of coverage.
So LaVerne… your now a Governemt Spokesman? Should the Prees now direct their questions to you?
Soooo,
Do not take the bait!
Ms. Furbert, can you PLEASE give it a rest. Really-look at it from the public’s point of view…it seems that no matter what the PLP does, you’re right there to defend them. It makes you personally lose credibility because sometimes the concerns are valid ones. Now you’re speaking on behalf of the Finance Ministry? C’mon…are we to think that you know the intricate workings of that department now, too?
You were given a position by your Gov’t and swiftly had it taken away because you just were not cut out for the job, and even the Premier couldn’t deny it. Even that couldn’t sway your blind faith in this party…it just comes across as weird how you just defend them so fiercely-it’s like it’s an obsession or something.
In any case, Mr. Dunkley has a job to do and you’d be surprised what he knows and who calls him to tell him things. Do you all think he just went to sleep and dreamed this stuff up? Clearly there is some validity to it, because the Gov’t never outright denied it. If the public knew how much the Gov’t is robbing Peter to pay Paul, you all would be horrified. Your Gov’t is BROKE…when they have to borrow money to meet its own payroll, you know these are dire times!
For all you doubters on this thread, why would you not think that what Mr Dunkley has brought to the public’s attention has been brought to him by one or some Civil Servants. You are all so ready to jump without thinking. Why would Mr Dunkley, a man of integrity tarnish that reputation by being involved in something that is not true. Let’s see how long it takes before the Government Agency admits what is really going on.
Morning @ Rhonda please get your facts right as Gov. Dental is not with ARGUS and hasn’t been since 2003…they are with BF&M
@Mom I am human…and being human is to error from time to time..I must have been thinking about my shrinking Pension Acct. Admin by Argus when I misspoke…..
My main concern is that if they are behind on their dental coverage and that has been cut off for them, when is their carrier going to cut them off of Medical?
This is appalling that government workers who have taken a pension “vacation”, no overtime allowed, no new staff being hired due to the fiscal irresponsibility of the PLP government now don’t even have their dental plan which is a benefit to them.
Time to vote in the OBA to get the public purse in order.
The only sad thing is that if the OBA comes to power people will soon seriously start hating them. They will need to implement some serious austerity measures to get Bermuda out of this mess this present Gov’t has gotten us into. Bermudians will soon start to whine, and miss the days when the PLP blindly led us down the path of destruction. It’s like that story in the Bible where Moses led the Israelis out of Egypt and they soon forgot their days of bondage and started grumbling that he had them out in the desert…
People will start to blame the OBA for what we see as hard times. It will be hard, but we all have to remember that in the end it will be for the best and for our children and grandchildren’s benefit that we suck it up right now to have better days in the future. It will be tough…I admit that I’m not looking forward to it any more than the next guy but the OBA will have to do what it has to do to save Bermuda.
They are likely so dopey they don’t even know their premiums are due!
Well according to dentist office I called my name and any other she may type under GEHI says BF&M Suspended service contact your employer so for all the non believers that are govmt workers just call your dental office. But must admit no surprise if you ever look online under your social insurance to see your contribution you can see they only make like 2 bulk payments a year. They are always slow or in arrears.
Time to stop and think. why should I vote OBA? To hear Michael Dunkley on a weekly basis? Don’t think so! will now not vote for OBA!
@ Maybe true: You did what anybody else under GEHI could have done – check the facts.
Why anybody would think an Opposition member would speak out when it can be so easily proved or refuted is beyond me.
The one thing I will say is that BF&M is not always known for spot-on efficiency, so this could be a problem with the insurers rather than with Government. If that should turn out to be the case, I hope BF& M issues a public apology.
It has been a continuous issue, it is the most probable reason that government legislated that medical providers could no longer charge up front. Most of those, not all mind you, but most charged up front because of the government run health insurances continuous failures to pay claims in a timely fashion. It is then little surprise that government is haing problems paying their bills with empty coffers.
The greater concern to me is that a government that has shown a continuous failure to effectively manage the health plans it runs (GEHI, HIP, FutureCare) that it’s customer base pays into, now wishes to nationalize the health industry where not all of the customers pay into so the one who do have to pay more. Bermuda’s small population and high cost of living does not make this a feasible solution, even moreso since if it is implemented, it will take business and revenues from the local insurance companies(who are better equipped and for tthe most part leaving them to lay off staff, increasing the number of people who won’t be paying into the plan.
That’s ok Govt will hire them I am sure. But then you need to vote for them until the money runs dry. Oh yes, it has already. Well next step welfare state. Bye bye good old’ days.
http://plp.bm/node/6360
OBA Misleads Again! Dental Coverage Remains for Government Employees
9 July 2012 – 11:40am
Too much is too much. The OBA and Michael Dunkley have really crossed the line this time. Dental coverage remains in place for government employees. There was no interruption in service.
Michael Dunkley’s claim was not plain not true. It is “regrettable and baseless” that the OBA is making such claims.
Dental coverage has not been suspended nor cancelled.
We are all for honest debate, but, when you mislead the public openly and blatantly, you are hitting below the belt. We are Bermudians, and we are better than this.
It’s a shame that Michael Dunkley and the OBA are openly misleading the Bermudian public in order to gain power
obviously cannot make any statment kee getting blocked!!!!repeats???what???
obviously cannot make any statment keep getting blocked!!!!repeats???what???
I have not made any comment ,, brand new on this site thank you!!!!!!!!