Vrysalis: We are escalating the resistance against the government policy that commercializes health

“The government not only does not take any measures to deal with the tragic situation that prevails in public health units, but further commercializes health, with a price list and a “legal bag” with paid afternoon surgeries, removes the possibility of timely and free care for the people” , says the president of the PAGNI Employees’ Union, Dimitris Vrysalis, in a written statement, on the occasion of today’s meeting of the Health Unions of the Heraklion prefecture.

Here is the full text of his written statement:

“With today’s meeting, we continue the militant mobilizations that took place recently on our island, we are escalating the resistance against the government’s Health policy. Today there is an even greater need for a joint coordinated struggle not only of the health workers but of the whole people. The health care situation in our county is deteriorating. The Resignations, “commissions”, the opening and closing of ICU beds, the opening and closing of Child Psychiatry, machines that do not work due to a lack of staff, intensification, owed days off and leaves are now common problems in all structures. The problem of one immediately becomes the problem of the other hospital and even multiplies.

The increase of population with the arrival of thousands of tourists is sure to lead to the collapse of all health structures in the prefecture.

At the same time, the age-old policy of all governments is advancing rapidly, which turns hospitals into health centers and health units into “autonomous business units”, where operating costs are increasingly transferred to the backs of patients, either by direct payments or by increasing insurance contributions for health care. What is needed today is to put an end to the ongoing disintegration of public health. We have to react, because our lives don’t fit into any scale. We want the hospitals and all the health units of our prefecture to be fully staffed with the necessary personnel. Nothing less! We don’t trust those who got us this far! No matter how many announcements are made, they are not going to be covered with the few crumbs above and without decent wages.

The government that not only does not take any measures to deal with the tragic situation that prevails in the public health units but further commercializes health, with a price list and a “legal bag” with paid afternoon surgeries, removes the possibility of timely and free care for the people.

Health is a social good and must be provided free of charge by the state in an exclusively public and free health system, fully financed by the state budget, with the abolition of all business activity and with services worthy of the current level of development of medical science and technology.

In this context, we require:

• Full and sufficient state funding of the hospitals, Health Centers and other Health units of Heraklion from the state budget.

• Mass recruitment of permanent staff, full-time and full-time, of all branches and specialties.

• Permanentization of all contract and adjuncts without terms and conditions.

• Staffing of Rural and Regional clinics in all the villages of Heraklion with permanent medical and nursing staff.

• Reinforcement of the EKAB fleet, in all means, and recruitment of the necessary personnel. Free movement of patients and their companions in secondary transports.

• To organize special care with health and social services for the disabled and their families, the elderly, the chronically ill and the kidney patients.

• Absolutely free care, with 100% coverage from the state budget, medicines, treatments, modern therapeutic means, technological aids for everyone.

• Occupational physicians in all major workplaces. Taking all health and safety measures in all sectors and workplaces.

Together we take initiatives to highlight not only the problems, but also to shed light on the cause that gives rise to them.

Let’s respond competitively with initiatives that we will take in front of the strike for the 1st Labor Day.

To honor the special role of the Nursing Branch and the Midwifery Branch on 5/13

To organize protest rallies on the occasion of the health strike on 5/16

To proceed to a meeting of unions and agencies on 10/5 for the better organization of the mobilization

To give secular characteristics of a Pan-Rachelian uprising to the 21/5 strike by closing public services, municipal stores, shops, by organizing a big concert.

With the slogan of free health for all the people, hands down from the hospitals, health centers, welfare structures, financial and labor support of the fighting health workers”.