Javier Milei’s ultraliberal government promised to veto a law that relieves the crisis of public hospitals in Argentina, A decision that believes necessary to protect fiscal balance but could cost its beaten popularity before a key -term elections.
The image of the president was affected at the end of the last week by a corruption scandal that could involve his sister, Karina Milei, a vital official in the government, at a time when Congress – dominated by the opposition – approved the law of “pediatric emergency”.
The norm, That with a fiscal cost of US $ 98 million annually favors the iconic Garrahan hospital, it was approved together with an increase in public universities and other social services that Argentines feel proud, which Milei had trimmed barely assumed power at the end of 2023.
Despite being popular measures among the population, the president of the radical right considers that they could put his fiscal austerity plan symbolized by a chainsaw, which allowed him to drastically reduce inflation to almost 30% per year.
Milei accused the legislators of “breaking the country promoting projects that seek to break the fiscal balance.” An official source said that the Government plans to wait at the end of the allowed period of 10 business days to veto the projects.
But your decision contains a cost: Recent surveys show a drop in the public image of Milei -Who will put a good part of its political capital in the October elections- together with a high popularity of causes such as that of the Garrahan Pediatrics Hospital, whose doctors lost more than 50% of their purchasing power since the end of 2023 at the hands of inflation.
“Entering this hospital was to enter the team” of Soccer, Santiago Weller, Surgeon and Chief of Urology of the Garrahan recalled. “But the salary lag is taking a lot of people to leave the hospital; work teams are disassembled and stop quality,” he lamented.
An August of August of the consultant Zuban Córdoba revealed that 94.6% of 2,000 respondents had a positive image of the claw, while 78.5% considered that the claim of the hospital workers is appropriate.
“Milei pays costs in the face of public opinion for the veto,” said political analyst Lucas Romero, of the Synopsis consultant, who recorded in August a 6 percentage up rise in the negative image of the president with respect to June, to 54.2%.
Milei considers the fiscal balance the backbone of its plan, which also implies a commercial opening and a cheap dollar that aims to maintain with the fresh investments that the government expects them to arrive after winning the mid -term elections, for which the ruling party starts as a favorite.
Meanwhile, the Government trusted index elaborated years ago by the University Di Tella collapsed 13.6% this month compared to July.
While a victory in October would not grant him a majority in Congress, he would allow him to block initiatives of a dispersed opposition, mostly from the center -left Peronism.
The elections will have a difficult prelude to the ruling party with the mid -term vote of the province of Buenos Aires, in September, of uncertain result.
Anti Symbol – Chainsaw
As a consequence of the adjustment, the Garrahan, an emblem of the state health system located in Buenos Aires, known for its experience in organs of organs and surgeries of high complexity, suffers a bleeding of doctors.
In the midst of a lack of salary update that compensates for high inflation, the hospital has lost almost 10% of the staff this year, according to leaders of the State Workers Association, ATE, with many positions that were not renewed. Hospital and Ministry of Health authorities did not respond to the Reuters consultation.
“It seems to us an aberration what “the government is doing, Pablo Wong told Reuters, a 46 -year -old siamese account whose siamese children were separated 20 years ago In the Garrahan and today they find difficulties in continuing their treatment in other public hospitals.
According to the Argentine Association of Budget and Administration, Asap, the Garrahan budget for 2025 was adjusted only 10%, compared to an expected inflation of 27.3%.
Nicolás Sticco, head of the pediatric palliative care area of the Austral Hospital -private management -said he made the “difficult decision” to leave the claw in 2024 for the salary collapse. The pediatrician stressed that a doctor of his specialty wins near the double in the private sector.
Employees who remain in the hospital have been forced to look for complementary jobs, such as the Kinesiologist Fernanda Testoni, 44, whoUien must sell clothes in your free time because it earns less than US $ 1,000 per month. “The salary is no longer enough for me,” he explained.
Employees from other national hospitals such as the crossing or inns described similar salary problems.
“The system is crunching and there is a perspective that the State should not interfere (…) It is unfeasible to think about the health system as a free market,” said expert Fernando Zingman, former head of health of UNICEF Argentina.
The specialist warned about budgetary reductions in sensitive areas of public health such as vaccines, prevention of pregnancies, HIV and hepatitis.
According to the World Population Review website, Argentine doctors are one of the worst payments in the world, with an average annual salary of US $ 19,983.
Popularity of Milei falls before crucial provincial elections in Argentina Read Full Story
