Manacor council backs its hospital

Spokesmen for the political parties on the Council held meetings with the heads of various departments at Manacor hospital to let them know what had been agreed at the last council meeting.

The politicians let the hospital chiefs know that they are going to ask the Balearic government Health ministry not to go ahead with plans to stop some subsidies to Manacor hospital such as those for laboratory and analytical work or certain types of minor surgery. The council will also ask that those health services which Manacor hospital has been forced to relinquish or pass on to other health centres should be restored.

Implicit in Manacor council's appeal to the Balearic government is the demand that enough funding be made available for all the health departments at the hospital to provide a full service to the public.

Manacor council wants to convey a message to the regional government that residents in the municipality are getting concerned that the quality of the local health service is being eroded.

The health department chiefs were told the council would make available to them any premises they may need for meetings or any other activity they deem necessary to support the maintenance of Manacor hospital as a public, rather than private service.

Marches and protests are meanwhile being organised in defence of the public health service in Manacor, with senior politicians committed to taking part “in the front line.”