It is the Health, stupid! For Boaventura de Sousa Santos

Boaventura de Sousa SantosÉ tragedy, in Portugal if you are trying to destroy what the American people both aspires. More tragic is that, in this area, there since 2002, with the government of Mr Barroso, a poorly disguised continuity between the policies of the PSD and PS. Descartada the rhetoric, the objectives of the minister of health of Mr Barroso, Luís Filipe Pereira, and the former Minister Correia de Campos are the same.
Article of Boaventura de Sousa Santos published in Vision on February 14, 2008, available at Centre for Social Studies

It became famous the phrase "Is the economy, stupid", pronounced in 1992 by Bill Clinton to explain to Republicans the reasons for its election victory. It meant that the main concerns of the North American had to do with the state of the economy and how that is translated in their welfare. And why one of its election promises priority was the creation of a universal health system, which approached the health systems of Europe and Canada, which finished with the scandal, in the richest country in the world some 30 million citizens not having any protection in health. As is well known, large companies in the health industry (the hospital companies, insurance, pharmaceuticals and diagnostics) moved one of the most aggressive wars media that there are memory against "socialist medicine" of Clinton and the proposal dropped . Today is the 49 million North Americans without any protection. There is no public system except for the elderly, workers depend on the willingness of employers to aggregate the insurance to the employment contract and such availability is becoming increasingly scarce. It is therefore not by chance that the candidates of the Democratic Party, Barak Obama and Hilary Clinton, again put at the centre of its programmes electoral public funding for universal coverage means of health.

More than ironic it is tragic that in Portugal is trying to destroy what the American people both aspires. More tragic is that, in this area, there since 2002, with the government of Mr Barroso, a poorly disguised continuity between the policies of the PSD and PS. Descartada the rhetoric, the objectives of the minister of health of Mr Barroso, Luís Filipe Pereira, and the former Minister Correia de Campos are the same: privatize the public good health, transforming it into a lucrative sector of investment capital (as said Recently, a framework of a large company of health: "the more profitable business of health, only the business of arms"); transform the National Health Service on a residual system, technological and humanly descapitalizado, providing poor service, the people poor society; define efficiency in terms of cost and not in terms of clinical results (paroxismo led to the decision of former socialist minister to limit the increase in production surgery in hospitals not to increase their spending); eliminate any citizen participation in the formulation of health policies to impose quickly and dramatically three words of order: privatize, close, focus, promoting public-private partnerships in which all risks are borne by the state and the financial slippages not count as wasteful or inefficient (since one or the other is a unique public-sector).

The Correia de Campos, only to recognise the consistency. Since passing by the World Bank took up as coveiro the State Social, whether in health or social security. In the Commission's White Paper reform Social Security, which pertenci, noted with amazement that their allies on the committee were not the Socialists, were precisely Luís Filipe Pereira (shortly after that wanted to privatize health) and Bagão Felix (which, since always wanted to privatize social security). Someone remembers that the creation of the NHS in 1979 caused the abandonment by the CDS of the coalition claimed that the government of the socialist party? So, two one, or the PS abandoned their principles or Correia de Campos is in the wrong party? His recent resignation seems to point to the second option but the only concrete policy of the new Minister confirm whether or not this is actually not the first option.

For this first option does not confirm it is necessary that the actions of the government if paute by works and not by words, by the following principles.

The NHS is one of the main pillars of democracy Portuguese, and she should the huge gains in human development over the last thirty years; any setback in this area is an attack on democracy. The NHS is a decisive factor of the territorial administration of the country (the country does not end at 50 km from the coast). The NHS is a service funded by all, the service and managed according to the gains in health and in order to eliminate waste. In the criteria of efficiency, include the efficiency in the lives of patients whose punctual attendance is crucial not to miss a morning in a medical act that lasted 20 minutes.

It is urgent modernise the NHS to bring the citizens both in the delivery of care as in the management of services (participation of citizens and associations of patients in the implementation of the right to health should be encouraged). Promoting any cost the regime of exclusivity and end with a scandalous promiscuity between the public and private medicine to, for example, does not continue to accrue fabulous fortunes based on the waiting lists and the lack of equipment. Promoting stability and career, focusing on technological innovation and scientific and democratic access to the colleges of Medicine. Above all make clear the complementary nature of the private sector before the group's economic health (Group Mello, BES, LBW / GPS, CGD / HPP, etc.). Have enough power to themselves to define the public health policies and, therefore, to block any measures affecting their interest rates. When this happens they will be to say: "It is a health, stupid!", The health of their businesses, not the citizens stupid.