Govt denies 4-fold hike in Aasandha expense and primary link

Government on Thursday denied any link between the significant increase in Aasandha health insurance expenses in January and the recently concluded presidential primary of MDP.

Parliament speaker Mohamed Nasheed, who unsuccessfully contested the January presidential primary of ruling MDP, questioned on Tuesday whether the four-fold increase in was linked to the primary election. 

Nasheed said:

According to finance ministry data, MVR 283.4 million was spent for Aasandha last month, which is 28% of the MVR 1 billion allocated for the national health insurance scheme in this year's budget.

Presidential spokesperson Muivan Mohamed on Thursday that the cost incurred on Aasandha in January has not increased.

"Going by the numbers that are out there, the expenditure in different months may have been different. I don't understand how the internal elections were linked to Aasandha. We don't know if people are going to see a doctor in the run-up to elections," he said.

"Bills send by various hospitals and clinics are paid in different months."

Aasandha Company's Information Officer Aasia Solih told Atoll Times that the amount included in the weekly fiscal report released by the finance ministry is not directly incurred by Aasandha in that month or that week.

"Sometimes we pay 2-3 month bills in one go and the amount we spend will change month by month," she said.