Premier Ewart Brown has called a press conference for this afternoon to discuss the thorny issue of the closure of the Medical Clinic — one day before a planned protest march on Cabinet by those opposed to the closure.

Attacks on the decision to close the clinic — announced last year — continue, with Shadow Health Minister Louise Jackson yesterday urging the Government to stop “digging a hole” on the clinic, reverse the decision and allow it to continue operations.

Mrs. Jackson said the clinic offers a one-stop shop for its patients, which cannot be achieved by Government’s plan to farm them out to a number of Island doctors.

Without everything in one place, transportation will be a problem, Mrs. Jackson said.

“That was clear when the Premier had no answers when protestors challenged him in March,” she said. “Now (Acting Health Minister Philip) Perinchief says that ‘volunteers’ from the Red Cross and Meals on Wheels have been lined up to provide transportation for patients and that Government was ‘standing by’ to provide mini-bus service if needed.

“The two charities will have to divert energies from their own important work to shore up the Premier’s closure decision. It strikes us as an unsustainable arrangement.”

Dr. Brown announced the impending closure of the clinic in last November’s Throne Speech, saying its patients, primarily indigents, were suffering from a lack of dignity.

Since that time, those opposed to the plan have rallied to keep the clinic open, gathering over 2,000 signatures and now preparing for a second protest march in the hopes the Premier will yield.

Dr. Brown could not be contacted for comment yesterday.

While the politicians continue to wrangle over the fate of the clinic, patients like Alice Easton, 49, wait to hear how their health care will be affected.

Ms Easton has been using the Medical Clinic for the past ten years.

While she was once on Government financial assistance, she told The Royal Gazette she prefers to fend for herself rather than depending on Government handouts.

When she lost her job with a cleaning company and her health insurance, however, she found she could not afford the $55 doctor bills she would be regularly forced to pay and turned to the Medical Clinic.

Ms Easton needs to see a doctor on a regular basis for her blood pressure and asthma, for which she will be on medication for the rest of her life.

She now works for herself, cleaning homes and trying to make ends meet, but the extra money needed for medical bills remains outside her reach.

“I try to do my best to be independent and on my own, but if I can’t pay for the doctor’s visit I have to stay at the clinic,” she said.

In a statement to The Royal Gazette>yesterday, Mrs. Jackson also expressed concern over Government’s decision to deny those with $5,000 or more in savings medical assistance, saying that it would unfairly target seniors.

Acting Health Minister Mr. Perinchief announced last week that, as of today, people who were previously assessed for indigent status at Bermuda Hospitals Board will have to visit the Department of Financial Assistance in Global House, Church Street.

There, they will have to provide proof of ID, a letter of referral from a medical doctor, a list of medications and, where necessary, a verification via the Department of Immigration. People with savings of more than $5,000 will not be eligible for assistance.

“This is another example of the disconnect between the Brown Government and people,” Mrs. Jackson charged yesterday. “The figure is too low to be fair. For many seniors, $5,000 represents the cost of a funeral, something for which they save.

“For many that amount of money in savings has no bearing on their financial well-being.”