PSMAS Hospitals Re-open After Government Intervention; Workers Return
Premier Service Medical Investments (PSMI) hospital facilities in Harare have finally re-opened after the government’s intervention, and workers have confirmed they are back at work. They have been closed for months due to financial challenges, causing workers to withdraw their labour over unpaid wages.
PSMAS, the parent company of the troubled health insurer, runs a medical insurance scheme for government workers and has other health-related subsidiaries, including clinics and hospitals under PSMI, with nearly one million members, mostly government workers.
On Tuesday, the government announced it would pay off all PSMAS debts and ensure individuals found guilty of looting the health insurer are jailed. The government has previously rescued PSMAS by releasing ZWL$4 billion to the medical society in November last year.
Workers said they were glad to be back at work, but face water supply issues at the COVID-19 Centre.
On Thursday, there were few patients at Prestige, but West End in the Avenues said it was serving patients with PSMAS medical aid.
PSMAS experienced financial problems due to mismanagement, corruption, and other issues. Some executives were accused of looting the health insurer, resulting in the company struggling to pay its bills and workers’ salaries. This led to labour strikes and the closure of some hospitals and clinics under its subsidiary, PSMI.
