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CHCC owes Star Marianas $96K for medical referral
A Rota senator is playing referee between the Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. and Star Marianas Air on issues relating to interisland medical referrals and balances owed the airline.
According to Sen. Teresita Santos (R-Rota), CHCC owes Star Marianas Air about $96,000.
Yet the senator is also urging Star Marianas to lift its rule that requires upfront cash payments to confirm reservations of those travelling for inter-island medical referrals.
She said not doing so would put referral patients at risk of losing their chance to travel to Saipan for treatment.
Santos was prompted to make the appeal to Star Marianas at the urging of CHCC chief executive officer Esther Muña in a letter dated Dec. 19, 2017.
She said in her letter that losing a seat critical for the prompt treatment of referral patients from Rota resets the process of securing spending authorization and approval to avoid questionable discrepancies.
“Upon booking, CHCC must perform necessary procedures such as producing a travel authorization and having it approved. CHCC must also then prepare the payment for the travel through CHCC’s financial system, obtain approvals, and then print the check,” Muña wrote, reiterating the lengthy process.
In the same letter, Muña ultimately asked Santos to assist CHCC with the issue.
In response, Santos, in a letter to Star Marianas president Shaun Christian dated Jan. 17, 2018, informed him of CHCC’s situation. Star Marianas representative Joe Cruz later met with the senator last Jan. 15, 2018.
According to Santos, Cruz informed her that CHCC owes Star Marianas about $96,000.
Upon learning this, Santos sent a letter dated Jan. 23, 2018, to both Christian and Muña to urge them to discuss the matter.
“Hopefully, these concerns would be addressed between [Star Marianas] and CHCC,” said Santos.
Muña did not immediately respond to Saipan Tribune’s request to comment
