WILLEMSTAD - The Ministry of Public Health, Environment, and Nature (GMN) confirms that agreements have been reached with the Betesda Foundation to alleviate the delicate financial situation. At the same time, Dr. Rog, the director of Betesda, needs to account for the expenses incurred.
Betesda, a significant player in care facilities in Curaçao, is facing serious financial issues. Due to these financial problems, the institution has not paid taxes since 2018, and the tax debt has increased to around 15 million florins.
To ensure Betesda's continuity and the employment of its workers, Betesda and GMN have convened on numerous occasions. The Minister of GMN has actively made efforts to find solutions to Betesda's financial problems.
In June 2023, Betesda received a one-time subsidy of 2,013,000 florins to recover from the critical backlog (613,000 florins), purchase highly essential materials (1,250,000 florins), and acquire a new bus for transportation (150,000 florins).
In October 2023, Betesda received information about a proposal to improve the financial situation. This led to additional meetings between GMN, Betesda, Curaçao Medical Centre (CMC), and the Social Insurance Bank (Sociale Verzekeringsbank - SVB).
In December 2023, an agreement was reached whereby Betesda will make available 40 beds for short-term care for patients from CMC, financed by SVB.
This service originated from a significant increase in the patient load at CMC related to non-urgent short-term care for patients who do not need to stay in the hospital longer but, for various reasons, cannot return home.
With these 40 beds, Betesda will receive an additional income of approximately 1.5 million florins per year. This additional income will contribute to alleviating Betesda's financial deficit.
The conditions of the budget agreement with SVB and collaboration with CMC will be coordinated among the parties involved. In this process, clear agreements must be reached regarding the quality of the short-term care that needs to be provided. Additionally, agreements must be reached regarding the smooth transfer of patients from CMC to Betesda.
The Minister confirmed the agreements this week in a letter to Betesda, responding to Betesda's request for assistance. As a result of this, Betesda agreed not to take further legal action against the government.
An evaluation of these agreements will take place at the end of 2024, determining under what conditions Betesda will continue to offer this service.
Betesda submitted a report on February 28th, holding them accountable for the expenses incurred with the one-time subsidy of 2,013,000 florins. However, the report still has some points that are not clear, requiring Betesda to provide additional clarification. If Betesda does not account and explain adequately, the Minister will take appropriate measures against Betesda.
The Ministry of GMN continues to make every effort to ensure Betesda's continuity as a significant player in the care sector and for the employment of their workers. Minister Silvania will never tolerate the misuse of tax funds for unjustifiable purposes and will not hesitate to take strong action against unacceptable actions.