Government Senators were silent yesterday on whether FutureCare clients have now been directly informed of the snafu that led to excess monies being leaked from the healthcare scheme.The question came from Shadow Health Minister Michael Dunkley during the Motion to Adjourn in reaction to a Ministerial Statement by Senator Vincent Ingham.“There’s no doubt the Government has tried to inform clients of FutureCare of the coverage,” said Sen Dunkley.But he added that the phased implementation of the programme whereby different pricing prevailed for each phase meant that there were bound to be challenges.“In this case, clearly there has been an error made and clients have not been informed of what is taking place,” Sen Dunkley said.“My question to the Honourable Junior Minister is because this unfortunate event has taken place, it is incumbent that when the errors are made you clear it up even though it’s painful and difficult to do at times.“So the question is ‘Have all FutureCare clients that have been impacted by this system or configuration error now been contacted directly not through the media, not through press conferences, not through statements in this Senate or another Honourable place have they all been contacted directly to be informed of what took place, how it took place and their obligations going forward as far as payments are concerned?’.“Because I think it’s important that we stop the back and forth between political parties and we let our seniors know just what happened, why it happened and what we’re going to do going forward.”Senator Vincent Ingham’s statement had reiterated Health Minister Zane DeSilva’s insistence over a week ago that the Government had fully informed FutureCare clients of the programme and its benefits.But the ruling party Senator’s Statement did not address the Minister’s subsequent acknowledgment to this newspaper that a “system configuration error”, corrected in April, led to the scheme reimbursing some healthcare providers 100 percent of the cost of certain procedures done at the hospital instead of 75 percent.And in response to Sen Dunkley’s comments, he listed initiatives, including FutureCare, which he said demonstrated Government’s commitment to “the well-being of our seniors”.“I was very pleased to see in the newspaper today an article by Age Concern which is offering themselves as an intermediary for our seniors,” he said.“Very few complaints have been lodged to Government directly by our seniors. And we would encourage our seniors who are having financial challenges to make it known and they will find that the Government will be responsive.“However, the issues around payments whether that service is being provided in the hospital or that service is being provided outside the hospital certainly has been clear from the get go, and it continues to be clear.”Sen Ingham added: “It’s in no one’s interest to make this a political football. This is a matter that is best addressed between our seniors, the healthcare providers and the government. There is full commitment on the part of the Minister to do so.”He called upon service providers “who seem to be lacking in understanding in terms of payment” to make it known to Government so it could be addressed.Speaking to The Royal Gazette following the session, Sen Ingham described the error as “regrettable”.“My concern going forward is there will be no further situations arising where there is confusion with respect to payment and delivery.“I believe it’s important for all of our seniors to be absolutely clear regarding our policy and I encourage our seniors, if there is any misunderstanding to contact the Ministry with any questions that they may have.”He said: “As I understand it, there have been payments made to service providers outside the hospital whereas the provision of the policy in terms of full payment pertains to service providers within the hospital.“It is regrettable that this has occurred. I believe if there is a senior who is distressed by this and finding it a hardship to address any adjustments that may need to be made, I would encourage that senior again to be in contact with Financial Assistance so that we can resolve it to the satisfaction of our seniors.”The error, corrected in April, meant that FutureCare was reimbursing doctors 100 percent of the cost of certain procedures done at the hospital, instead of 75 percent. Clients and doctors believed that the practice reflected actual policy.Yesterday, Sen Ingham expressed concern that some seniors may find themselves out of pocket.“If someone has been overpaid, my view is that that is not monies that have been lost. If a service provider has been paid 100 percent, they’re okay.“The question is if it is 25 percent recovery that is expected from a senior, how do we go about addressing that?“And I believe the same sensitivities that undergird the whole FutureCare healthcare package would be the same sensitivities that would be deployed by the Ministry as we address this particular issue.”But he warned that he did not have current information and did not know the scale of the problem.What is clear is that, going forward, FutureCare clients will be billed by their doctors for the 25 percent differential for certain procedures done at the hospital.“I’m confident that the problem will be addressed in a reasonable and fair way and I believe that going forward this type of problem will not arise,” Senator Ingham said.The Senator pointed out that healthcare providers were not overpaid. “If someone requested $100 for a service, $100 has been paid. That’s not an overpayment.”Asked whether there should not have been by now direct communication to FutureCare clients about the snafu in the first place, Sen Ingham said: “I believe the Minister is the one to answer that question.”