WILLEMSTAD – Curaçao Medical Center (CMC) is calling on the government to urgently resolve what it describes as a structural funding problem, warning that the hospital faces a gap of approximately XCG 29.6 million in 2026 between the cost of providing necessary care and the funding expected from the Social Insurance Bank (SVB).
According to CMC, the hospital requires approximately XCG 236 million this year to provide the necessary care to patients insured through SVB. However, SVB is expected to provide XCG 206.4 million, leaving a shortfall of about XCG 29.6 million.
CMC says this is not a new problem. For several years, the hospital has formally informed the Ministry of Health, Environment and Nature (GMN) and SVB that the available financing is insufficient to cover the healthcare services it is required to provide to Curaçao’s population.
Despite repeated meetings, formal correspondence and supporting documentation, CMC says no structural solution has yet been implemented.
The hospital stresses that the healthcare funds already received are being used to cover immediate operating expenses. Nevertheless, its financial position is again approaching a critical point.
Based on current projections, CMC warns that from the beginning of November it could face insufficient liquidity to meet all its financial obligations on time.
The hospital says it continues to improve its operations and use available resources responsibly, but argues that efficiency measures cannot compensate for a structural mismatch between the cost of healthcare and the financing available.
CMC refers in this context to the 2023 KPMG report, which it says also demonstrated that internal improvements alone cannot resolve a structural funding problem that is beyond the hospital’s control.
The warning comes as the government considers additional financing for the hospital. Health Minister Tyron Boekhoudt recently indicated that an additional XCG 10 million will be made available in 2027.
CMC says it is still waiting for clarity on the purpose, conditions and timing of that money.
According to the hospital, it is particularly important to determine whether the XCG 10 million is intended to finance improvements resulting from negotiations over the collective labor agreement, or CAO.
If the additional funds are earmarked for employee employment conditions, CMC argues, the same XCG 10 million cannot simultaneously be counted as a solution to the hospital’s existing operational and structural deficit.
CMC says further delays are no longer responsible and is calling for clarity, accountability and concrete government decisions on structural financing.
The hospital maintains that a financially sustainable CMC is essential to guarantee accessible, safe and high-quality healthcare for Curaçao’s population.