Austerity and the Unraveling of European Universal Health Care

[marmar]

from Dissent magazine:


Austerity and the Unraveling of European Universal Health Care
By Adam Gaffney - Spring 2013




A great human disaster is now unfolding in the many Eurozone countries that have agreed to slash spending, wages, and living standards to meet the demands of fiscal austerity. One facet of this story that has received far too little attention, however, is the effect of these measures on the health of these nations.

Austerity derives from the Greek austeros, for harsh or severe; but, in the area of health care, it has veered into the cruel: health expenditures dwindle, hospital budgets shrink, health care needs rise, and human suffering worsens. Suicide is on the rise; basic hospital supplies are missing; potentially life-saving surgeries are delayed; the rate of new HIV infections increases; drug shortages are ubiquitous; the prevalence of mental illness spikes. And these are just the obvious results.

The effects of austerity on health care are both immediate and long reaching. Deep cuts in public health spending clearly exacerbate the suffering caused by the prolonged economic depression. At the same time, the cuts contribute to a more pernicious, slow-moving, and decidedly political process.

For austerity is being wielded to initiate the unraveling of one of the great and humane achievements, indeed inventions, of modern Europe: the universal health care system. To understand why this is the case, let us take a brief look at how Europe came to have what it has today, before we return to the dangers of the present course. .........................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.dissentmagazine.org/article/austerity-and-the-unraveling-of-european-universal-health-care

[LiberalLoner]

1. The elite are orchestrating a massive die off so that

There are enough resources left for their own families.

Do we fight back or submit to dying without any effective pushback against the elites?

[CrispyQ]

2. This.

Get what you can while the getting is good.

[DCKit]

3. Killing off the useless eaters. Not at all surprising. nt

[Addison]

4. Frightening how successfully the Right has

capitalized on its destruction of the world economy to accomplish its goals

[blkmusclmachine]

5. .

.

[grahamhgreen]

6. The privateers do evil. They might not think they are evil, but they are doing it's bidding, IMHO.