Healthcare in St. Kitts and Nevis is being used as a business by the family of Prime Minister Timothy Harris and profit is placed above service and care.
That view, felt by many in St. Kitts and Nevis, was articulated Wednesday by the St. Kitts-Nevis Labour Party (SKNLP) caretaker for St. Christopher 8, Dr. Terrance Drew.
He said the corruption in the Team Unity Government is so widespread that it has now reached the United States Senate.
Dr. Drew was referring to the unethical and illegal herpes vaccine trial, which took place at a private home in St. Kitts in 2016.
Prime Minister Harris told a press conference he has asked the police to investigate, but there is the widespread feeling that this is just a smokescreen as the police is not the competent body to begin such an investigation.
“We see immoral, unethical human subject trials, the likes that have not been seen in our history. I am speaking of the herpes trial and the unethical stem cell research at our J.N. France General Hospital. It was (Junior) Minister of Health Wendy Phipps, senior health minister, Eugene Hamilton and the cabinet that sanctioned the stem cell trial where plasma was brought into St. Kitts and used at our hospital bypassing the necessary testing and regulations in place by the Chief Medical Officer,” said Dr. Drew, who further pointed out that when the then Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Patrick Martin, found out about the illegal and unsanctioned programme at the local hospital, Prime Minister Harris sent the CMO on vacation, then pre-retirement leave and then dismissed.
“The scandal of the herpes trial has now reached the United States senate and if this government thinks it can get away with such corruption it will not, for the United States will find answers,” he said.
Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley, the Republican chair of the United States Judiciary Committee have taken up the matter asking for an assurance that “corrective action” was being taken to prevent similar research abuses.
Dr. Drew was also critical of the installation of an MRI equipment owned by a nephew of the prime minister, who hauled in close to EC$1 million last year.
Dr. Drew said the MRI facility should have been installed at the J N France General Hospital and informed that a privately-owned CT-scan machine was recently installed at the hospital, also owned by the Prime Minister’s nephew when the existing one could have been upgraded.
Dr. Drew also referred to the health issues in the Department of Labour and accused the Labour Minister Vance Amory and his Permanent Secretary Ron Collins “of being arrogant and playing petty politics, while people’s health is being put at risk.”
“The healthcare system is at great risk of collapse and all will suffer,” he said.