Senior citizens will get a free senior health care clinic if the United Bermuda Party is elected to power in the coming election, the party promised yesterday.

At a press conference held at the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital yesterday, the party also said it would provide free prescription drugs, eyeglasses and preventative medical care to tackle the Island's "senior health care crisis".

Flanked by candidates Senator Neville Darrell, Hilary Soares and party leader Grant Gibbons, shadow Health Minister Michael Dunkley said that a UBP government would pilot a free senior health care clinic and review health insurance programmes in a bid to improve coverage for seniors.

"The Smith Government has failed to present a coherent plan to address the unique needs of our elders, and life on this island for our growing elderly population has deteriorated," he said.

"Action is needed now to plug the gaps in healthcare coverage, provide safe and affordable housing, improve pension benefits and secure better human rights."

The senior health care clinic will cost about $1 million a year and will be staffed by a geriatrician, four nurses and a receptionist.

The clinic will offer diabetic and blood pressure screenings, annual check-ups, counselling and prescription of generic medication.

Mr. Dunkley said it was "shameful and deplorable" that some seniors had to choose between buying groceries and buying medication because they cannot afford to do both.

The proposed clinic will replace the family physician for seniors whose insurance schemes limit doctors' visits, said Ms Soares, the party's candidate for Devonshire North Central. The retired nurse said that seniors were currently being treated as "second class citizens" and that the UBP's plans were a "first step" but not a panacea.

"Right now, many seniors do not have adequate health coverage and thus lack access to preventative care," she said in a prepared statement.

"They then end up waiting until symptoms are severe and then must go to the emergency room for treatment. We need to make sure those folks have preventative care and treatment before they have to go to an emergency room."

Insurance reform will be pursued in consultation with healthcare providers, senior advocates and insurers, she added.

"We will explore a range of options, including medical savings plans, further enhancements of HIP and increased use of generic drugs," she said.

"Compared to people with private health plans, seniors without adequate health cover have limited choices. HIP will pay for an emergency room visit that can run into thousands of dollars but not for a preventative health physical exam which could detect a problem early on. HIP will pay for an amputation but not for the insulin that could help diabetes patients avoid losing their limbs. This is absurd. It is far better to prevent than to cure."

Bermuda's seniors are potentially a major political force in the coming election. About 11 percent of the Island's total resident population are above the age of 65, according to the latest census statistics.

And a huge chunk of them are living well below the poverty line.

According to the census report there are now 6,722 people over the age of 65 - an increase of 25 percent since 1991. Forty percent are classified as poor, ten percent are "near poor", 34 percent enjoy a middle class existence and just 16 percent are "well to do". In the general population the figures are 19, 11, 42 and 27 percent respectively.

Among the over 65 year olds, 1,613 are working or seeking employment and pension incomes, which were collected separately for the first time in the history of the census, are abysmal.