For 25 days, a heart patient in Curaçao lived without a vital medication—not because it wasn’t available, not because it wasn’t approved, but because the Social Insurance Bank (SVB) simply failed to communicate that approval.
The medication in question, Rybelsus 14mg, was urgently prescribed to manage a serious heart condition. But instead of receiving timely access, the patient was left waiting—caught in the dead space between policy and communication failure. It wasn’t until a reporter (myself) and the patient made a direct call to SVB that the machinery finally began to move.
An internal investigation revealed that SVB had, in fact, approved the medication on April 8. Yet the pharmacy only received formal notification on April 25—a full 17 days later, and nearly a month after the prescription was initially submitted on March 26.
The result? A full 25 days without access to life-sustaining treatment.
This Isn’t Just a Delay — It’s a Warning
We need to stop viewing these bureaucratic lapses as mere paperwork issues. When health is on the line, delays become denials. This patient was not inconvenienced — he was placed at risk.
Why wasn’t the pharmacy informed the moment approval was granted? Why didn’t the patient receive any update during the gap? Who, exactly, is responsible for ensuring life-saving approvals don’t die in someone’s inbox?
These are not rhetorical questions. They must be answered — not only for this patient, but for every person relying on SVB for access to medication.
SVB’s Bureaucracy Cannot Be an Obstacle to Care
This case exposes a troubling disconnect between SVB’s internal processes and the very people it is meant to serve. In healthcare, every minute matters. Bureaucracy is necessary — but it must never be an obstacle to care.
There is an urgent need for SVB to overhaul its communication systems. Approval processes are meaningless if the results don’t reach the patient. If pharmacies are left in the dark, and patients are left waiting, then something is profoundly broken.
How Many Others Are Still Waiting?
We were fortunate this time: the patient fought, the media stepped in, and the issue was resolved — but only after three lost weeks. How many others don’t have the voice, the resources, or the luck to escalate their case?
The public deserves to know whether this was an isolated incident or part of a broader pattern. Transparency must become a core value at SVB, not a reactive measure.
Health Should Never Lose to Paperwork
Let’s be clear: this isn’t about blame for the sake of headlines. It’s about accountability. It’s about whether vulnerable people can trust the institutions meant to protect them.
SVB is entrusted with that responsibility. But trust is fragile — and it cannot survive repeated administrative neglect.
This patient asked a haunting question that still echoes:
Is there a silent war going on between SVB’s bureaucracy and the health of its patients?
If there is, it must end now — before another person is harmed not by illness, but by delay.
