Yesterday the biggest labor union in the medical field (CESM) drew a line in the sand that regional governments cannot cross in their attempts to reduce the deficit and public health spending that show unpaid provider debts greater than 15 billion euros.
The Secretary General of CESM, Patricio Martínez, assured yesterday that "if the situation worsens, then strikes and demonstrations are possible." What is clear is that "they are not going to let politicians interfere with the doctor-patient relationship, nor control how many tests doctors are allowed to take, how many patients need operations or how many have to register with a provider," Martínez warned.
The labor union that represents more than 40,000 doctors in Spain is especially preoccupied with the new wave of salary cuts applied to the Catalan healthcare system and could very well spread to other regions after the November 20 elections.
"Between now and when the new government takes charge before Christmas we expect more regional government cutbacks," said Martínez, who before holding the highest position of responsibility within the CESM led a six-day strike that paralyzed the Catalan healthcare system in 2006.
