People’s National Party (PNP) caretaker for South Manchester, Peter Bunting, is calling for the immediate resignation of the board of the Southern Regional Health Authority, led by businessman Wayne Chen.

This call follows an increase in the country’s maternal mortality. Since 2016, Jamaica’s maternal mortality rate has remained above 100 per 100,000 live births, with the highest reported rate being 211.3 per 100,000 live births in 2021.

This is according to the Ministry of Health and Wellness’s Population Health Status Report for the period 2000–2022. The ministry has attributed this increase to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bunting, in a statement on Monday, June 24, said the southern region has seen maternal deaths skyrocket tenfold, from 26 per 100,000 live births in 2017 to an unprecedented 273 per 100,000 by 2022.

“This tenfold increase in maternal mortality is not only alarming but absolutely unacceptable,” Bunting said. “Such a drastic decline in healthcare quality demands immediate action and accountability.”

The PNP caretaker said this increase in the region’s maternal mortality rate is not due to a lack of financial resources but to poor management.

“The Ministry of Health has received more resources than ever before. In addition to its increased share of the national budget, the European Union provided an additional $4 billion to upgrade facilities at several hospitals, including Mandeville Regional Hospital, which should have ensured sufficient ventilators, ICU beds, specialist beds for neonates, and facilities for high-risk pregnancies,” Bunting said. 

“To make matters worse, $700 billion of taxpayer’s money that has been allocated to the Ministry of Health and Wellness (MOHW) remains unaccounted for due to inadequate record-keeping and financial oversight,” he said.

 Bunting is now calling for the immediate resignation of the Southern Regional Health Authority board. 

“There can only be two explanations for this catastrophic failure: either the board has completely neglected its supervisory responsibilities or they have not been provided with the necessary resources to perform their duties. In either case, their continued leadership is untenable,” he said. 

“If they lack the resources, they should publicly declare their inability to perform their roles and step down. The rapid deterioration in our healthcare system cannot continue unabated, as it directly results in the loss of lives,” Bunting said.

He also underscored the urgency of addressing this crisis to prevent further unnecessary deaths and restore the quality of healthcare services for the citizens of Manchester, Clarendon, and St Elizabeth.

“The lives of our citizens depend on a responsive and accountable healthcare system,” Bunting said.

“We cannot afford to ignore this crisis any longer. Immediate and decisive action is needed to restore faith in our healthcare services and protect the health and well-being of Jamaicans.”