Are approximately 90 thousand the subscriptions to the petition on health in Lombardy deposited by the La Lombardia SiCura Committee – made up of dozens of associations, organizations, observatories and unions – to the protocol of the Lombardy Region. The initiative, launched on March 1st and concluded on June 10th, successfully promoted the battle for a Referendum for Public Health, which consisted of 5 points: improvement of bookings, streamlining of waiting lists through targeted interventions, introduction of coin-operated doctors, improvement of all care and assistance services for elderly people and diffusion and strengthening of local services with greater resources. The Committee’s action was supported by various local authorities and municipal councils, including those of Milan and Mantua, which approved agendas with the contents of the petition. At the press conference, the members of the Committee declared that the great success of the initiative «is the clear confirmation of the heavy state of discomfort in the population and of the urgency of structural actions to modify healthcare management in Lombardy, for a full restoration of the public healthcare service in all its aspects”.
The idea of collecting signatures was born from the need of citizens to regain possession of the “right to health and public healthcare”, which is increasingly compromised year after year. According to the latest report from the GIMBE Foundation, in fact, between 2010 and 2019, over 37 billion euros, despite the National Healthcare Requirement having increased by 8.2 billion euros in the same period. Consequently, it is increasingly complicated to guarantee the Essential Levels of Assistance, while regional inequalities increase. Furthermore, a recent survey by ANAAO (the main union of hospital doctors) revealed how 72% of doctors employed in public health want to abandon the National Health Service, as they are subjected to extremely heavy workloads and very little time to dedicate to private life. For all these reasons, the Committee reported that «we will move forward with the request for the referendum and will keep you updated and updated on developments».
[di Valeria Casolaro]
