Rallies were held in nine Slovenian cities Tuesday in support of the preservation of public healthcare amidst underfunding and understaffing concerns, but a strike that would have shut down most non-essential services for 24 hours was ultimately called off.
The rallies were held because an estimated 130,000 people, more than 5% of the country’s population, do not have a named GP, which has led to overcrowded emergency wards. The situation has worsened by the week as GPs quit the public system.
The rallies were organised by Voice of the People, one of the main groups behind the anti-government protests of 2020-2022, whose figurehead Jaša Jenull said this was a protest “against the greedy healthcare and insurance lobbies which exploit the crisis to post millions in profit.”
Whereas the organisers had previously said the protests were not targeted against the government, Jenull criticised measures that supposedly resolve the crisis but exacerbate privatisation and decried “unnecessary foot-dragging with urgent systemic change.” “Healthcare will be the make-or-break issue for this government,” he said.
All coalition parties had endorsed the rally, a move critics said was unusual given that it is up to the government to resolve the mounting problems. In fact, many senior coalition and government officials were in attendance in Ljubljana, including Prime Minister Robert Golob.
Golob did not address the crowd, but in a brief statement for the press he said that he had one clear message: “We understand the plight of people, we’ve come here to listen to the various arguments, and we’ll do our best to use this year to get work done.”
The government has made 2023 a key year for health reform, and several legislative bills are set to be adopted to address the most pressing problems. According to commentators, the government’s healthcare efforts will determine its survival.
In a rare piece of good news for the government on the healthcare front, a looming doctor strike was averted by a last-minute agreement with their main trade union penned just hours before the strike was due to start. The deal’s details have not been disclosed but likely involves substantial pay rises, particularly for junior doctors.
(Sebastijan R. Maček | sta.si)
Source: euractiv.com
