At a Government House news conference yesterday, Governor de Jongh announced the establishment of a task force to coordinate the implementation of the health care reform bill enacted by Congress in March and to oversee a number of local initiatives undertaken by his administration to expand access and improve the health care system for all residents in the Virgin Islands. 

Governor John P. de Jongh, Jr. speaks at a press conference to announce the establishment of a task force to coordinate the implementation of the health care reform law passed earlier this year by Congress and to oversee a number of local initiatives undertaken by his administration to expand access and improve the health care system for all residents in the Virgin Islands.

The Virgin Islands health care Reform Task Force, established by executive order, will be composed of 14 members, including Lieutenant Governor Gregory R. Francis, who, in his capacity as Commissioner of Banking and Insurance, will serve as Chairman. Task force members will also include the governor or his representative and the commissioners of Health and Human Services, the directors of the Office of Management and Budget and Personnel, the Attorney General, the chief executive officers of Schneider Regional Medical Center, Governor Juan F. Luis Hospital, Frederiksted Health Care, Inc. as well as the executive director of the St. Thomas East End Medical Center Corp., the chairman of the GESC-Health Insurance Board of Trustees, the director of Virgin Islands Equicare, and the chairman of the Legislature’s Committee on Health. 

In addition to establishment of the task force, the Governor also announced the appointment of Barbara Lee-Jackson, MPH as Coordinator of Health Care Reform Implementation. Lee-Jackson will provide liaison with the task force and will coordinate the efforts of all agencies of the territorial government to ensure full implementation of the provisions of the federal reform legislation that are applicable to the Virgin Islands.

In announcing the establishment of the task force and the appointment of Barbara Lee-Jackson, the governor also highlighted a number of initiatives his administration has recently taken to improve the Territory’s health care system.

In his opening remarks, the Governor said:

“My Administration has embarked on what can best be described as the most extensive overhaul and revitalization of the Virgin Islands’ health care system. As part of these efforts, we will improve and expand health care coverage to thousands of families and individuals who are currently uninsured or ineligible for public programs such as Medicaid.” 

“In particular, we will focus on the connection between access to quality health care and the quality of life in our community. Utilizing the resources made available to us with the recent enactment of major health care reform legislation by the United States Congress, we will ensure that all of our children and pregnant women will have timely access to necessary health care services. Too many of our children do not get appropriate and needed care, especially preventive care, and as a result are less able to learn and succeed. This contributes to a cycle of poverty and low expectations that we must break, and we will break it.” 

The Governor also noted the efforts of his administration to overhaul the Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Programs (“CHIP”) in the Virgin Islands.

“When my administration took office, the Medicaid Program in the territory had long been neglected. Our systems were unable to pay claims in a timely manner and the program was chronically short of funding. During the last two years, we have submitted several amendments to our State plan to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) in Washington for approval. These amendments will allow coverage for new and expanded services which are not now covered. And changes in Washington as a result of the new health care reform bill, which we have worked hard to help shape, will bring the most significant increase in federal funding to our Medicaid program in history."

The Governor also said today that his administration has initiated discussions with the Department of Health and Human Services in Washington to increase Medicaid reimbursement rates in the territory.