Health Insurance
Insurers had to trust gov’t over benefit scheme
(CNS): Following the announcement that the health ministry was going to help hundreds of workers pay their health insurance premiums during the COVID-19 lockdown, insurers were forced to trust government because how it was going about this benefit scheme was not made clear, CNS has learned. The industry body issued a statement, Wednesday, saying insurers […]
Ministry waits on invoices to pay health insurance
(CNS): Health Minister Dwayne Seymour has said that people who are depending on their health insurance being paid via government’s Health Insurance Premium Payment Assistance Programme are covered, even though not all premiums have been paid. Problems with the assistance scheme were revealed by CNS Friday, and it is still not clear what has gone […]
Health cover benefit scheme goes awry
(CNS): Hundreds of people who are on unpaid leave from their jobs or working only part-time who believed their health insurance was being covered by government may find that they are uninsured after all. A benefit scheme administered by the Health Insurance Commission to temporarily cover employers’ health premiums for furloughed workers appears to have […]
Local COVID-positive cases climb to 150
(CNS): Chief Medical Officer Dr John Lee reported that there were nine new COVID-19 positive cases since he last revealed test results on Monday. The batch consisted of over 800 test results and the positives included one traveller in quarantine, two contacts of people who had already tested positive for the virus and six cases […]
Pharmacy shuts shop after worker tests positive
(CNS): Health Care Pharmacy in Grand Harbour closed on Wednesday in order to sanitize the store after one staff member tested positive for COVID-19. The management made the announcement on Facebook confirming that person is asymptomatic and was tested as part of the screening process of front-line workers. Officials confirmed to CNS that the member […]
Ministry surveying struggles to pay health cover
(CNS): Health Minister Dwayne Seymour said that his ministry is currently conducting a survey to find out how many companies are struggling to pay their employees’ health insurance fees. He said they are aware that many companies may have lost all of their business and might now be in a situation where they can no […]
Beaches open Tuesday with some restrictions
(CNS): There will be no hard curfew during the day this Sunday, but otherwise the current lockdown measures will remain much the same until next Tuesday, 18 May, following the long weekend. But after that, people will be able to exercise on the beach, swim in the sea and go fishing, as well as swim […]
Ministry to help with health insurance
(CNS): Health Minister Dwayne Seymour has revealed that his ministry plans to assist people in need who are struggling to meet their monthly health insurance premiums if they qualify. The minister has not outlined the criteria or who will qualify for the help but he said at Wednesday’s press briefing that information on this temporary […]
Labour law change aims to keep people insured
(CNS): An amendment to the Labour Law regulations will extend the period that employers can lay people off without firing them to 60 days before they must pay severance. Premier Alden McLaughlin said this was to encourage employers to retain their workers for longer “until things get easier”. If people keep their jobs, even if […]
CoP refers ‘rogue’ rider arrest to ombudsman
(CNS): Police Commissioner Derek Byrne revealed at Sunday’s press briefing that an arrest made by his officers has been referred to the ombudsman for investigation. The arrest was made on Saturday, 4 April, following a high-speed chase of one of five ‘rogue’ dirt bike riders. Byrne said that during a time like this, when the […]
Minister dodges health cover issue
(CNS): The health minister said very little about the pressing issue of health insurance costs when he spoke for almost two hours on Monday during the debate on the Unity government’s $2 billion budget. Despite having some of the most intractable problems of any minister, including garbage collection failures and the increasing struggle many face […]
