The union has recalled that the cuts were implemented a month earlier this summer and that the closure and reduction of opening hours of Basque health centers will affect six out of ten centers this summer. From the union they ask the new government for a plan.
The ELA union has denounced that Osakidetza Primary Care is already active direct cuts for 180 days a year, not only during holiday periods, and that the closure and reduction of opening hours of Basque health centers this summer will affect six out of ten centers. Likewise, the union has indicated that this year they will be applied one month earlier, for a total of four months, from June to September.
As the head of Osakidetza, Esther Saavedra, emphasized during a press conference last Monday: “the closure and reduction of the opening hours of the Osakidetza health centers is a usual practice in recent years during the summer months, Christmas and Easter.
Saavedra believes that these cuts are “greater every year and last longer” and blames the Ministry of Health for “not taking any measures to solve a problem that is structural as a result of a political decision.”
From ELA they specified that, according to Osakidetza, between June and September Cuts will be applied in 126 of the 339 primary care centers. He recalled that in 2022, summer cuts were applied from July, so this year they will start “a month earlier”.
As indicated, cuts will be applied for the first time this summer in the OSI Bidasoa and Rioja, and in the OSI Bilbao-Basurto there will be 10% more cuts than last year.
To these restrictions, he continued, “which will last four months, we must add the restrictions applied at Christmas and Easter”, which, according to his calculations, reflects the severity of the situation: Primary care centers They operate 180 days a year. with immediate restrictions (closures, hour reductions), half the year.
In addition, ELA has recalled that the situation will worsen if there is no plan to deal with pensions: the average age of professionals is 50 years.
At this point, he has warned that this situation will worsen if no measures are taken, since, he stressed, “Osakidetza on the threshold of a new term is worse than four years ago.” Given all this, from the union They have asked the new government for a plan to deal with this situation.
Source: EITB
I’m Wayne Wickman, a professional journalist and author for Today Times Live. My specialty is covering global news and current events, offering readers a unique perspective on the world’s most pressing issues. I’m passionate about storytelling and helping people stay informed on the goings-on of our planet.
