She has introduced a local bill to mandate that the surviving spouse or any other relative who cared for the deceased gets the money.
“That would help cover the expenses incurred while the deceased was still alive and to help assist the surviving family members with the financial burden they inherited,” she said.
Santos, Ind.-Rota, said patients staying at the Rota Liaison Office on Saipan get $300 each while those staying somewhere else get $450 each.
These funds are appropriated to terminally ill patients and those undergoing dialysis treatment to help defray the excessive cost of their healthcare needs, she added.
Those patients are treated on Saipan because the treatment is unavailable on Rota, she said.
Santos noted that it takes time for funds to be released once a local appropriation bill is signed into law.
Thus, several of those terminally ill and dialysis patients have passed away without receiving the funds.
Under Santos’ bill, only funds appropriated prior to the individual’s death will be released to the spouse or relative.
The funding source is Rota’s poker and pachinko license fee collections.
