Medical plans will cover hospital room costs and physician fees as of 1 April 2020 in the Dominican Republic. The coverage includes those in intensive care units. Previously, patients had to cover the cost of hospitalization that is more commonly weeks not days.
An agreement was recently reached with the private clinics association (Andeclip) and private health providers (ARS). Pedro Luis Castellanos Castellanos, the director of the Superintendence of Health and Labor Risks (Sisalril), said this could put an end to the private clinics not accepting Covid-19 patients, despite such refusal being against the law. Castellanos said many clinics had rejected the patients arguing they were full or did not have the adequate protection to deal with these cases.
Castellanos spoke interviewed by Diana Lora and Patricia Solano for La Cuestion radio talk show on 6 April 2020.
As per the agreement, the medical insurance coverage is extended to health care workers that have caught the disease while on the job.
Castellanos said that he expects that large quasi-government institutions, such as Plaza de la Salud and Cedimat, are likely to accept the health plan coverage agreement. “The idea is to expand the services to all those who need them.” He said even the most basic of health plans are covered by the recent agreement.
Read more in Spanish:
Diario Libre
Sisalril
7 April 2020