DOCTOR Alverston Bailey, the immediate past president of the Medical Association of Jamaica (MAJ), yesterday called for a review of the high cost of hospital fees, especially for the elderly, which he said is oftentimes more costly than their funerals.

Dr Bailey cited a recent case where the relatives of an elderly woman who died at the Falmouth Hospital who were left holding a whopping $80,000 hospital bill in addition to the cost of her funeral, which they were unable to afford.

“We need to look seriously at the issue of abolishing user fees especially for the elderly because many are given bills for health care which far exceeds the cost to bury them,” he said.

These and other grouses were highlighted at a meeting yesterday with Health Minister Ruddy Spencer and senior health officials at the Terra Nova Hotel in Kingston.

In the meantime, Dr Bailey questioned why the Falmouth Hospital’s accident and emergency section was operated from a small room, although the hospital was recently refurbished at a cost of $400 million.

He also challenged the argument that persons seeking health care should go to health centres instead of hospitals, saying many were refusing to do so because they were unhappy with the level of primary care at those facilities.

Meanwhile, Health Minister Spencer, who addressed the gathering before reporters were asked to leave, said while he was quite aware that the health professionals did not have the requisite tools to do their job, there was not much that can be done at this point in the financial year.

He, however, promised that in the next budget there would be an adequate supplies to discharge the best medical service that the country must get.

“Under my watch I am going to grapple with my colleagues in Cabinet that it must be addressed and addressed in a meaningful way if we are expected to deliver the kind of service requested of us,” Spencer said.

The minister, who yesterday signed a contract for work to begin at the May Pen Public Hospital, said he was surprised to discover that although the staff were working under very trying circumstances money had always existed to award the contract.

“Today we were able to sign that contract and work is to begin next week and I tell them the work is for three months, not three months and one day,” he said.