DR1 Daily News - Dominican Republic

The National Health Insurance (Senasa) announced it is suspending the contracts of 10 private primary care centers that serve patients under the subsidized health plan. The move, effective immediately, will shift these centers from a fixed-rate payment model to a pay-per-service system. The announcement comes as the government health insurance plan seeks to unravel much criticized contracting with private medical providers. The scheme negatively impacted the resources of the government public health system.

Previously, the government had said the finances of the entity were hurting because of the expansion of two million people in the subsidized plan. Yet, new reports indicate actions under the Santiago Hazim management, many times to favor private entities, have weakened the finances.

According to a statement from Senasa, this decision is a response to the agency’s ongoing financial struggles. Senasa’s new executive director, Edward Guzmán, stated the change aims to ensure...