Full Support for the Jamaican Athletes Insurance Plan (JAIP)
By: , August 12, 2016The Key Point:
Photo: Rudranath Fraser
Senior Director in the Sport Division at the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Florette Blackwood (right), examines a health card following her address to members of the Amateur Swimming Association of Jamaica at a forum on the Jamaican Athletes Insurance Plan (JAIP), held at the St. Andrew High School for Girls on August 10. Sharing in the moment (from left) are representatives from Guardian Group (Medicus Health), Aldith Grant and Employee Benefit Manager, Allied Insurance Brokers, Garfield Grant.The Facts
- Some 1,300 of the country’s sportsmen and sportswomen have already signed up for JAIP, implemented at just under $60 million per annum.
- The athletes are drawn from 28 of the over 40 sport associations whose members comprise junior and senior athletes who represent Jamaica at international competitions.
The Full Story
The Government will continue to pay all the premiums for this fiscal year for the country’s sportsmen and women who have signed up for the Jamaican Athletes Insurance Plan (JAIP).
This was disclosed by Senior Director in the Sport Division at the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Florette Blackwood, while addressing members of the Amateur Swimming Association of Jamaica at a forum on the JAIP, held at the St. Andrew High School for Girls, on August 10.
She said the ultimate expectation under the programme is that the Government pays 95 per cent of the contribution to the plan, while the sport associations pay the remainder.
“Within another two or three months our systems will be in place, so we can receive the five per cent, but the possibility is that we are not likely to collect that five per cent for this fiscal year,” Ms. Blackwood noted.
She pointed out that since the programme was activated in February 2016, no requests have been made to sport associations for their contribution to the programme.
The Senior Director said that the Amateur Swimming Association of Jamaica was one of the few associations that initiated discussions regarding contribution to the plan.
Some 1,300 of the country’s sportsmen and sportswomen have already signed up for JAIP, implemented at just under $60 million per annum.
The athletes are drawn from 28 of the over 40 sport associations whose members comprise junior and senior athletes who represent Jamaica at international competitions.
The plan, implementation of which commenced on February 1 following two years of preparatory work, provides group health, life and personal accident coverage for beneficiaries aged seven to 75.
Participants also heard presentations from representatives of the insurance providers Guardian Group and Allied Insurance Brokers.
JAIP is being financed by the Sports Development Foundation (SDF), National Health Fund (NHF), Tourism Enhancement Fund (TEF), and the Culture, Health, Arts, Sports and Education (CHASE) Fund.