CHC welcomes GHLI patients

Public Health Secretary James U. Hofschneider yesterday said the Commonwealth Health Center would be accepting Government Health and Life Insurance patients who would be turned away by the Pacific Medical Center even if GHLI itself owes the CHC more than $24 million.

The PMC has advised the government that it will stop accepting GHLI patients beginning May 10 if its debt collection problem is not resolved promptly.

“I anticipate some increase in the number of patients encountered here at the CHC. I think we can handle them,” Hofschneider said. “There will be patients who will need services [who] will not be able to go to PMC and we will be happy to take care of them.”

But the health secretary distanced himself from the problem between the GHLI and the private clinic, saying that the department is not a party to this.

However, he explained that it is the government hospital’s responsibility to accept any patient that knocks on its doors for help.

Due to GHLI’s inability to pay its obligations to the PMC, the clinic had said it will shut its doors to GHLI recipients.

The PMC was contacted by telephone yesterday afternoon, but its owner, Dr. Ahmad Al-Alou, was not available for comment.

Hofschneider said he understands the situation being experienced by the government, including the GHLI, which is administered by the Northern Mariana Islands Retirement Fund, as House Rep. Benjamin Seman called for a meeting among concerned government agencies and private healthcare providers that include the PMC.

Besides that of the PMC, Seman had said the GHLI is obligated to all the private healthcare providers on Saipan in unpaid billings.

The private clinics on Saipan are the Islands Medical Center, the Marianas Medical Clinic, Saipan Health Clinic and FHP.

“Frankly in the past, the government health insurance has paid off-island health providers [in] Hawaii, Guam, Philippines and the private providers, including PMC, and has never really paid us – we have billed them,” he continued.

The DPH had recently disclosed that, out of the $79.2 million in accounts receivable that it stands to collect, the bulk of these indebtedness comes from the government.

GHLI and the CNMI Medicaid Program owe the CHC some $52.3 million. GHLI and Medicaid owe the health department some $24.4 million and $27.9 million, respectively.