PRESS STATEMENT
Debra Moxey-Rolle, FNM Candidate for the Exumas & Ragged Island: PLP Neglect Has Put Lives at Risk – Exuma Deserves Better Healthcare Now
The Free National Movement (FNM) is once again sounding the alarm on the dangerous state of healthcare services. This time, the nation turns its eyes toward Exuma, the Exuma Cays, and Ragged Island. Recent events have laid bare the sad reality that the healthcare system is failing residents and tourists, and immediate action is long overdue.
“Tourists should be able to visit our country with the assurance that, if something goes wrong, they’ll receive timely, professional care. Right now, that’s not the case in Exuma. The absence of basic emergency services, like ambulances and 24-hour medical teams, is unacceptable.”
“While we commend the small rescue group for stepping in to help the injured, we can’t ignore the fact that things could have ended very differently if they hadn’t been there. How would he have made it to the clinic? He could have lost his life waiting for an ambulance to arrive.”
“It is 2025, yet Exuma still lacks a proper 24-hour emergency medical response team. In far too many cases, the process involves a person leaving their home to collect an ambulance responding to the scene. That kind of delay is reckless and dangerous.”
“Our reality is that Chester Cooper has failed to deliver. This crisis was promised to be fixed, yet after four years of waiting, nothing has changed. The Bahamian people deserve more than broken promises. They deserve leadership that understands a lack of access to quality healthcare is not just a mere inconvenience, it’s a matter of life and death.”
“While the PLP has failed to act, the FNM has a clear plan to restore confidence in the healthcare system, not just in Exuma, but across the country. We will:
● Fully resource acute care facilities to restore dignity and end the dangerous practice of cash demands during emergencies. No Bahamian will be denied care because they can’t pay upfront,
● Improve pay and working conditions for nurses, doctors, and allied health professionals to retain top talent and deliver world-class care,
● Expand NHI to cover catastrophic care, create a national blood bank, and build a standalone morgue and coroner’s facility,
● Fast-track funding and oversight to repair and upgrade clinics and hospitals,
● And close the gap between public and private healthcare, because access to quality care should never depend on your bank account.”
“The FNM stands ready to deliver the kind of healthcare system Bahamians can count on in every island, and in every emergency.”