Two years ago, following the sudden and unexpected removal of Health Minister Godfrey Farrugia, it was announced that a “Global Health company” called Vitals would be taking over 3 hospitals, indeed before any discussions were held with health worker representatives and indeed a “fait accompli”.

Thanks to investigative journalism we got to know that this global company had zero prior experience in health care and was owned by a myriad of companies leading to letter boxes in the British Virgin Islands with a few thousand euros in capital. Government speakers re-assured that capital would be forthcoming from Allianz, Oxley, or the Bank of Australia, but as expected none materialized as these fell off like skittles in a bowling alley.

Such was the fear of a debacle after so much fanfare that the honest tax payer of Malta passed €25 million in 2016 and €34 million in 2017 to a company which to date has failed to provide its audited accounts to the Malta Financial services authority. This money resulted in a “crater” in front of Gozo General, and a scaffolding with a half-baked effort to clean St. Luke’s façade, with very little change in patient care.

Indeed, two reputable institutions Barts Medical School and Partners international were brought into the picture to give an impression of normality and perhaps distract from what was unfolding, when in fact these two had nothing to do with the proposed investment.

There is little hard evidence from the patient’s point of view of what happened to the vast sums of money which bled the national coffers. In this context a number of suppliers are complaining that they have not been paid and as so far what happened to these 60 million euro has not been accounted for with the financial authorities.

This is a flawed deal where 3 hospitals were passed to this network of companies for €3 million, and an annual ground rent of half a million euros, and €20 million worth of equipment for the measly sum of one euro.

The people of Malta had a golden opportunity to recoup the lost properties as Vitals publicly appeared to collapse and start afresh and negotiate from a position of strength. While the €60 million or so probably have fallen into the proverbial “well of knives” inside letter box companies one would have expected the government to ask the MFSA to investigate what happened to this money before giving its consent to a sellout.

While Steward appear to have more expertise, the government is still in a position of weakness where it is not in control of its hospitals, made no attempt to recoup its money, and is still obliged to fork out money in advance before any investment has been made exposing itself to the same risk which caused this debacle and once again it is “buying fish which are still in the sea”.

MAM remains opposed to such a privatization but must remind the government that in the last collective agreement government bound itself to give 6 weeks’ notice to MAM before any privatization and outsourcing and made a written commitment to show key documentation before such a move. It is the intention of MAM to explore legal remedies to this situation in the national interest and efficient use of health care resources.

 

Dr Martin Balzan is General Secretary of the Medical Association of Malta