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PHILIPSBURG:--- Ombudsman Gwendolien Mossel recently concluded the Systemic Investigation into the procurement procedure of SZV for the selection of medical aid equipment (glucometers). After providing a Preliminary Findings Report, the Final Report was submitted on 30 December 2021 to the Director of SZV, Mr. Glen Carty. The Minister of Public Health, Social Development and Labor (VSA), Mr. Omar Ottley, was also provided with a copy of the report.

On 26 May 2020, a complaint was filed by a member of the general public regarding alleged faulty glucose testers being allowed as the sole option under the insurance of SZV Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- The Minister of Public Health, Social Development and Labor, Omar Ottley informs the public, that due to technical problems with the establishment of the Consumer Price Index (CPI), the AOV (Old-age pension), and AWW (Widow- and Orphan Insurance) will not be assessed in time to be indexed per January 1, 2022.

Annually, in accordance with the legislation, the amounts of AOV and AWW are adjusted on the basis of an increase in the CPI of the current year compared to the previous year Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- 

The Minister of Public Health, Social Development and Labor, Omar Ottley stated that while we are noticing an increase in active cases on St. Maarten, the public should not panic. Panic causes sudden uncontrollable fear or anxiety, and this is when things tend to go out of control.

Minister Ottley urges the public to remember to adhere to the health protocols, administer health passes for establishments, wear your mask, sanitize frequently, limit mass gatherings, and get vaccinated / boostered.

"While I am the Minister of Public Health, I am also the Minister of Labor, and with the country facing dire financial strain, we just cannot afford any lockdowns Read more

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Finso Promised To Pay Contractors And Vendors In Time For Christmas.

PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of Labor and Public Health Omar Ottley confirmed on Wednesday at the Council of Ministers press briefing that he received confirmation from the contractors of the New General Hospital that they will try to make the overdue payments to contractors and vendors before the Christmas Holiday.
The Minister also confirmed that several persons contacted him raising concerns about the non-payment from FINSO Read more

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Your Invited To The Community Fun Day Event On December 18.

PHILIPSBURG (DCOMM):--- Minister Omar Ottley and the Department of Community Development, Family & Humanitarian Affairs (CDFHA), proudly announce and invite the public to a Community Fun Day on Saturday, December 18 at the De Weever Property in Dutch Quarter.

The family fun day kicks off at 10.00 AM to 4.00 PM. There will be a childrens corner, lots of popcorn, cotton candy, a bouncy castle, face painting, Santa Claus, and visitors can win various prizes Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- On Monday, December 13th, the Minister of Public Health, Social Development, and Labor, Omar Ottley was invited to deliver a speech at the launching of the Simpson Bay Resort's food and beverages training center. Minister Ottley signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), with the Simpson Bay Resort on Friday, December 10th, which branches off of the Ministers incidental work policy with the aim to strengthen the local workforce.

The MOU documents the collaboration agreement between the Simpson Bay Resort and VSA's National Employment Service Center (NESC), to facilitate the proper training for St Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of VSA Omar Ottley says members of Parliament are a part of the legislative branch, who has the authority to amend laws that they may consider negatively affecting the countrys progress. Member of Parliament MP Angelique Romou should change the National Ordinance on Healthcare Institutions (landsverordening zorginstellingen) if she wants to help the two Mental Healthcare Psychiatrists who have taken Government to Court Read more

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No Information Forthcoming On Lance Thomas's Death.

~ Minister of Justice and VSA have no information on questionable death of Mental Health Patient.~

 PHILIPSBURG:---- The investigation surrounding the death of Mental Health patient Lance Thomas has become a public secret even though the Landsrecherche conducted an investigation. Minister of Justice Anna Richardson said in response to questions on Wednesday that as the Minister of Justice she does not interfere or meddle in the investigations, she said the Prosecutor told her that they would inform the bereaved family of Lance Thomas on the outcome of the investigation Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- On Friday, December 3rd, the Minister of Public Health, Social Development and Labor, Omar Ottley, and Ballast Nedam Internationals representative Mr. Jeroen Hanneveld signed the scope of service agreement (SOS) for the Princess Juliana International Airport reconstruction project. This SOS stems from Minister Ottleys incidental work instruction.

On September 30th, 2021 Minister Ottley signed off on a work instruction that strengthens the relationship between large-scale project owners/contractors and the Department of labour affairs Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- On Wednesday, December 1st, The Department of Community Development, Family, and Humanitarian Affairs (CDHFA) hosted its first annual interscholastic speech competition themed Global Solidarity, Shared Responsibility. commemorating World AIDS Day 2021.

In his opening remarks, Minister of VSA Omar Ottley commended the participants for taking up the challenge, and he emphasized the importance of the youth being involved in spreading awareness of the disease, HIV/AIDS Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- The Minister of Public Health, Social Development and Labor (VSA), Omar Ottley hereby informs the public that effective Monday, November 29th, travel restrictions from South Africa will go into effect and new entry requirements for the Netherlands to follow.

Minister Ottley announced that he sent a request to restrict flights and passengers arriving or traveling from South Africa within a 14 day period Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- Learning Unlimited hosted a successful health fair on Tuesday, November 23 to afford its students the opportunity to engage and learn from various health care professionals.
The fair was part of the schools Health Week and its efforts to show the students how to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Various health care professionals took part in the fair and came prepared with hands-on tools so that the students would have a good impression of what their respective professions entail Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- On Tuesday, November 23rd, 2021, The Minister of Public Health, Social Development, and Labor, Omar Ottley was honored to be the invited guest at the Learning Unlimited Preparatory School (LUPS) and the National Institute for Professional Advancement (NIPA).
Minister Ottleys visit to LUPS was a part of their healthcare day celebration, whereby the students learned about the different roles in the healthcare world Read more

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Tampa, Fla.:--- Seven Seas Water Group, a multi-national provider of Water-as-a-Service (WaaS) solutions, said it was very proud of the initiation of the scholarship fund for Sint Maarten, the Desalination Resource Development Program (DRDP).
We are extremely proud to launch this developmental program and further invest in the community, says Henry Charrab, CEO of Seven Seas Water Group. Our company and the government of Sint Maarten share the same vision of growing and supporting local capacity by investing in the people Read more

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Government In Negotiations With Seven Seas For Ownership.

PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of VSA Omar Ottley who is also responsible for drinking water confirmed on Wednesday at the Council of Ministers press briefing that he is in negotiations with Seven Seas Water since the government of St. Maarten is supposed to take over the ownership of the water plant by 2025. Ottley said the contract has a number of amendments that he could not elaborate on but said because of these amendments government has to prepare itself for the takeover, thus just recently an agreement was signed with Seven Seas to offer scholarships to persons that are interested in water production and distribution Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of VSA Omar Ottley issued a stern warning to businesses especially nightlife to strictly follow the COVID-19 protocol or face the consequences of having measures implemented for the lack of implementing the COVID-19 protocols.
Ottley said that the moment there are 4546 positive cases since March 2020 to present of that amount 4435 persons recovered while 75 persons are now deceased Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- On Monday, November 15th, the Minister of Public Health, Social Development and Labor, Omar Ottley, and the Director of Seven Seas, Mr. Franklyn Richards signed the Agreement for the Desalination Resource Development Program (DRDP) to officially launch a fund to provide scholarships and internships for Sint Maarteners. This program was created for persons who demonstrate the knowledge and traits in the field of water production, distribution, and other relevant technical fields, which is an added value for the continuity of energy and water production.

This program will allow Sint Maarten to strengthen its local resources in order to one day own and operate its own water production facility Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:---Domestic Violence Awareness Month 2021 is here. Womens desk in its role to empower women and by extension the family is embarking on Teen Dating Violence (TDV) awareness sessions under the theme: Behind the Mask targeting high school students. This initiative commenced with a kick-off session at the MAC- CSE with the 3rd and 4th form students.
As a result of stress arising from the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a global increase in relational violence. This campaign aims to prevent relational violence among teens by bringing awareness on the prevalence of TDV, warning signs, healthy ways to cope and respond.
Even as the world has become more virtual, digital abuse has also increased dramatically Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of VSA Omar Ottley confirmed on Wednesday at the Council of Ministers press briefing that the draft BIG Legislation is in its final stages.
Ottley said when he took office some seven months ago he was presented with a draft law but draft law does not adequately fit St. Maarten and its needs. This draft was prepared by the Inspectorate in 2017 but was never presented to parliament for approval and implementation.
The Minister of VSA explained that the draft that was presented to him had to be adjusted in several areas to fit St Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- The Minister of Public Health, Social Development, and Labor, Omar Ottley is committed to creating a balance between flexibility, job security, and curbing the misuse of short-term contracts. In order to do so, it is imperative that data be gathered to support possible amendments to legislation to prevent the issues arising from the use of successive fixed-term employment contracts and investigate the possibilities for more flexibility within the dismissal law.

Below are two links to a survey for Employers and Employees Read more

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Business To Open Until 3 Am As Of Friday.

~ Businesses closed on November 11th~

PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of Economic Affairs (TEATT) Roger Lawrence announced on Wednesday that businesses will be allowed to reopen until 3 am on Friday, November 5th, 2021. The Minister said the decision to reopen until 3 am was done in conjunction with the Minister of Labor and Health Omar Ottley Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- On Friday, (October 29th) Member of Parliament (MP) of the United St. Maarten (US) Party, Akeem Arrindell fired off letters to Minister of VSA, Omar Ottley, and Minister of Justice Anna E Read more

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 PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of VSA, Mr. Omar Ottley expresses shock and disappointment in response to the October 28 public notice of the Paramedic Association Sint Maarten (PASM).

The notice of the association stated that OZR insured would have to pay out of pocket for therapies as of November 1. Minister Ottley would like to give peace of mind to OZR insured patients that their respective therapies will not have to be paid for out of pocket and will continue to be covered by their insurance.

In the week of October 18, Minister Ottley met with representatives of the PASM to address their grievances, to which reasonable agreements were made through positive dialogue and a commitment to work collectively on long-term solutions Read more

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PHILIPSBURG:--- Minister of Health and Labor Omar Ottley announced on Wednesday at the Council of Ministers press briefing that persons visiting nightclubs will have to provide their vaccination card or QR code of negative PCR testing prior to entering these establishments.
Ottley said that the implementation of these requirements is based on the Memorandum of Intent (MOI) that was signed with the nightclub owners some months ago Read more

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