Opposition leader Marc Bean has called on Government to abandon plans to introduce pre-certification for medical testing.

In a statement this morning, Mr Bean said: “The news that the Bermuda Medical Doctors’ Association (BMDA) opposes the OBA’s pre-certification scheme should come as no surprise to most Bermudians.

“The facts are that pre-certification has been discredited and dismissed as a viable tool to lower healthcare costs because it has proven to delay patient access to needed medical treatment and drive up medical costs.

“Doctors are concerned that their patients may find their conditions worsening or even losing their lives while a clerk second guesses their physician. .

“Of particular concern in the Bermudian context is that with mounting job losses and stagnating wages, the Bermudians who can least afford it will be forced to pay more for the OBA’s pre-certification scheme, through increased government expenses, increased expenses for insurance companies and increased expenses for medical practitioners”

Mr Bean also said the “death by delay” system would target services offered by the Brown-Darrell Clinic, operated by former PLP Premier Ewart Brown.

“In some instances, Bermuda Healthcare Services (BHCS) and Brown-Darrell are the only providers of the diagnostic tests outside the hospital,” Mr Bean said. “In their apparent haste to target the business of a former PLP leader and Premier of Bermuda, the OBA have attacked the entire medical fraternity and put patients potentially at risk.

“The OBA must drop this ill thought out scheme and embrace a true consultative approach with the stakeholders that approaches healthcare cost containment in an holistic manner, that will not compromise patient safety or compromise service delivery.”

Last month, Government announced it was putting out a Request for Information (RFI) seeking health experts to create a pre-certification system for medical testing. According to the statement issued by the Ministry of Health, Seniors and Environment, it was looking for “information and creative ideas for solutions to implement, manage and operate a system to provide pre-certification of diagnostic medical testing for Bermuda’s healthcare system”.

The statement said pre-certification is intended for select medical imaging procedures, specific clinical laboratory test orders and orders with a cumulative value above $300. Orders by specialists and diagnostic testing for emergencies would not have to be pre-certified but self-referrals would be subject to pre-certification.

The statement quickly came under fire by both the Opposition and the BMDA, who expressed concerns that such an initiative would lead to delays in medical treatment and suggested other strategies be taken to tackle the high cost of healthcare.