BASSETERRE, St. Kitts, CMC – Prime Minister Dr. Terrance Drew Wednesday called on all stakeholders to adopt an integrated approach in response to non-communicable diseases (NCD) as the Twin Island Federation joins the international community in observing “Global Week for Action on NCDs.”
In an address to mark the September 14-21 event that will be observed under the theme “Bridging the Care Gap,” Dr. Drew, also the Minister of Health, said the week aims to ensure that the NCD response gets the attention required everywhere and for everyone.
“This year, 2023, the message being disseminated globally is, “Now is the moment for caring,” he said, adding, “Now is the moment to act on Universal Health Coverage (UHC) to ensure that everyone has access to needed health care regardless of their ability to pay, by 2030.
“This message is being sent to policymakers, governments, donors, international agencies, private sector entities, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). All stakeholders must adopt an integrated approach in the response to NCDs.
“As a collective, we hope this week’s activities will motivate us to urgently tackle the NCD challenge to ensure good health for all our people,” he added.
Dr. Drew, a medical practitioner, said NCDs, including heart disease, stroke, diabetes, cancer, and chronic respiratory diseases, are significant health challenges globally, regionally, and locally, accounting for over 70 percent of all deaths worldwide.
He said low- and middle-income countries are hit the most arduous, and NCDs account for 80.7 percent of all American deaths, with the Caribbean showing the highest rates.
“More than a third or 36.2 percent of the NCD deaths in the Region of the Americas occurred prematurely in persons younger than 70 years, equivalent to 2.1 million deaths in 2019,” he said, noting that the situation is similar in St. Kitts-Nevis.
“The NCDs – diabetes and hypertension are the leading causes of morbidity in the Federation. Between 2017 and 2021, NCDs accounted for 84.2 percent of reported deaths. The NCDs are our biggest health challenge, and we must combat this health problem now.”
He said that his administration recognizes that the time to act on NCDs and UHC is now and that he believes health care must be accessible to all.
“Everyone in the Federation should have access to health services when and where they need them without financial hardship. UHC is one of my priorities,” he said, adding that the government, in collaboration with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and experts from the St. Augustine campus of the University of the West Indies (UWI), “is in the process of establishing a National Health Insurance Scheme (NHI) whereby a package of essential health services including NCD management and care will be made accessible to everyone in the Federation.”
Dr. Drew said implementing the NHI scheme will be just one intervention to combat the NCD challenge.
He said the Ministry of Health’s response to the NCD challenge is comprehensive and has a three-pronged approach. He said the aim is to reduce the burden of NCDs by promoting healthy lifestyles, reducing the prevalence of the common NCD risk factors, and providing integrated, evidence-based treatment options.
Prime Minister Drew said the Ministry of Health continues investing resources into its NCD response.
“We have accomplished much. However, it is a journey, and we still have much work to be done. I reaffirm my commitment to implementing the NHI scheme and augmenting the national NCD response,” he added.
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