More than 300 social organizations, the scientific community, groups and 1,400 health professionals have called on the Ministry of Health this Thursday, on World Health Day, to “put an end to the” health exclusion that “thousands of people live in Spain and started just 10 years ago. With the approval of Royal Decree Law 16/2012. ”
At a rally in front of the ministry headquarters, where they read the manifesto, they condemned the new National Health System (SNS) Equality, Universality and Unity Law, the draft of which will be approved soon. The Council of Ministers “does not address many of the shortcomings and shortcomings of the current regulatory standard”, for which they call for an “urgent return” to the universal healthcare system model by 2012. ”
During the protest, various people who have experienced cases of health exclusion in Spain told their case, accompanied by Pablo Iglesias, RDL 16/2012 Speaker of the Complaints and Resistance Network and political advocacy technician for doctors worldwide. And Martha Perez, a spokeswoman for Yo Sí Sanidad Universal, who outlined the demands of the manifesto in detail.
The document states that access to public health in Spain was guaranteed to the entire population by the 2011 General Public Health Act. In the case of foreigners this access was recognized as the only requirement that they reside in Spain, despite her. Administrative status. “Thus, Spain topped Europe with a fully universal public health system, despite having one of the lowest health costs in our environment,” the speakers said.
However, they accuse Royal Decree-Law 16/2012, passed during the PP government of Mariano Rajoy, of “profoundly changing” the configuration of the health care system and its coverage, “depriving thousands of people of this right in an unjustified manner.” “.
“Evidence shows the negative impact of this measure on the health of the excluded with increased morbidity, difficulty monitoring pregnancy and mortality, as well as on society as a whole in terms of economics, well-being and constipation.” Social. And public health, which leads to serious inequality in health and social exclusion, ”they condemned.
Improvements and shortcomings
While they acknowledge that in 2018 the Socialist government “attempted to redress this injustice” with the passage of Royal Law 7/2018, they regret that this reform was “clearly insufficient”. “The new regulation does not restore the logic of the right to health care in Spain until 2012, and although it improves the situation of people living without a residence permit, it also has significant shortcomings and shortcomings that continue. “Challenging many situations of exclusion,” they explain.
As a result, they argued, “the exclusion of health in Spain is still an indisputable fact, the magnitude of which is difficult to determine because there are no official records.” In fact, organizations like REDER have recorded more than 5,000 cases of displaced people in the three years that RDL 7/2018 was in force, “reflecting the tip of the iceberg whose real dimension is much, much larger.”
The Ministry of Health is now preparing a preliminary draft of the SNS Equality, Universality and Unity Measures, which was approved by the Council of Ministers in the first round on 8 November. These subjects criticize that “in terms of universal access, it goes on without considering some health exclusion situations.”
Given the imminent period of approval of the final text of this preliminary draft, they emphasized that “this time is guaranteed to be a fully universal SNS”. “It is urgent to restore the model of the universal health care system by 2012: this is what we are asking for, no more and no less,” they said.
For all of these reasons, they have asked the government to restore ownership of the health and wellness rights imposed on state funds to all persons of Spanish nationality and to foreigners in Spain who have declared the area their residence, regardless. Their administrative status.
They also call for “the elimination of the requirement for a minimum stay in Spain to be able to access health care”. “This demand leads to weeks and months of delay in receiving assistance, which has a negative impact on people’s health and in some cases puts their lives in danger. The so-called “Health tourism’s unfounded fears do not justify this measure, for which other control mechanisms already exist,” they said. They also argue that it is necessary in any case to provide public assistance to persons under the age of eighteen, pregnant women, persons seeking international protection and statelessness, victims of trafficking, public health situations and emergency assistance.
Another important point is the need to promote legislative changes so that “ascending people who come to Spain through the family reunification process have the right to receive health care that is billed with state funds.” And require the elimination of the non-export accreditation requirement of the right. “This requirement is de facto impossible to meet, especially for people who are more vulnerable and often there are no bureaucratic channels to be able to certify this non-export,” they said.
More than 300 signatory organizations include scientific societies such as the Spanish Society of Public Health and Health Administration (SESPAS) or the Spanish Society of Family and Public Medicine (SemFyc); NGOs such as Salud por Derecho, Doctors of the World, Amnesty International, CEAR, Oxfam Intermón, Red Acoge or Kifkif, LGTBI Migrants and Refugees Association; And social groups such as Yo Sí Sanidad Universal, Solidarity Shelter Network, Latin Popular Solidarity Network Carabanchel, Interlavapiés Network, Support Association, CP San Carlos Borromeo, Neighborhood Coordinator, Valiente Bangla or Indoor Collective Association.
Source: El Diario
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
