The Government has set aside more than $4 billion to combat preventable illnesses under its ‘Prevention and Care Management of Non-communicable Diseases (NCDs) Project’. Details are outlined in the 2025/26 Estimates of Expenditure, tabled in the House of Representatives on February 13 by Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Hon. Fayval Williams. The project is geared at contributing to...

A Group Health Insurance Policy, covering 4,000 members of the Entertainment Registry, free of charge, will be launched by March 2025. Custos of Kingston, Hon. Steadman Fuller, made the disclosure while detailing initiatives under the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, as he delivered the 2025/26 Throne Speech in Gordon House on Thursday (Feb. 13). He noted that in...

The National Committee on Non-Communicable Diseases (NCNCD) is commending the Heart Foundation of Jamaica (HFJ) for using Heart Month in February to sensitise Jamaicans about the importance of adopting healthy dietary practices to reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVD). Speaking at the recent Heart Month Launch, Committee Chairman, Professor Trevor Ferguson, said the NCNCD supports the HFJ’s efforts to...

St. Jago Health Centre in Spanish Town has received a donation of medical equipment valued at $2.3 million from the VM Foundation. The items, which were handed over on Wednesday (February 12), include foetal dopplers, pulse oximeters, blood pressure machines and a diagnostic set. The donation marks the final set of medical equipment being handed over to the St. Catherine-based...

The St. Elizabeth Health Department is looking into the possibility of establishing an interim mental health facility as part of measures to strengthen the parish’s mental health response. Medical Officer of Health for the parish, Dr. Tonia Dawkins-Beharie, said the intervention, along with setting up a specialised subcommittee, was discussed at a recent public health committee meeting. “So, it's a...

More than 220,000 free screening tests have been administered to Jamaicans under the health intervention imitative ‘Know Your Numbers’, with 80,000 persons referred for care. Custos of Kingston, Hon. Steadman Fuller, in making the disclosure, said the initiative is part of the Administration’s commitment to deliver accessible, modern and high-quality healthcare for all Jamaicans. Know Your Numbers, he said, is...

Minister of Health and Wellness, Dr. the Hon. Christopher Tufton, says he is not opposed to recruiting from overseas to fill the nursing vacancies within the health sector. He was responding to questions posed by Member of Parliament for St. Mary Central, Dr. Morais Guy, on whether the Government would consider employing nurses from the Philippines to fill the gaps...