Brace for delays in health services, JMDA warns amid pay dispute

Jamaicans have been warned to brace for longer wait times and delays in the completion of procedures in the healthcare sector as junior doctors remain restive over the matter of overtime rates which has been before the Industrial Disputes Tribunal (IDT) for the past year. In a press release on Friday, Jamaica Medical Doctors Association (JMDA) President Dr Jubilee Brown said the body “cannot guarantee normalcy from 8 am on Friday, October 2, 2026 to 8 am on Saturday, October 3, 2026. “Only emergency services will be provided during this period,” the JMDA president said. She added that the association has activated relevant protocols to minimise adverse outcomes during the period. According to the JMDA, the Government owes the doctors $31 billion in retroactive overtime, but the Government’s calculation sits at $23 billion. “We have been working at the same overtime rates since 2021. This is unacceptable. The JMDA calls upon the Industrial Disputes Tribunal to hand down its award without further delay,” Brown said.