ACHTUF exposes govt. game plan to privatise health sector

All Ceylon Health Trade Union Federation (ACHTUF) yesterday alleged that the government only bore 40 percent of the total health costs.The private sector already accounted for 60 percent of the total health infrastructure, ACHTUF General Secretary, Dr. Jayantha Bandara said.

“There are crippling medical shortages in state-run hospitals. There are no equipment or materials for testing. Most machines are broken. The best doctors and other staffers are leaving the country,” he said.

The government claims that the economy has stabilised, however it has not allocated the necessary funding to revitalise the health sector, he said.

“The only solution the government has is privatisation. There is no plan to run a decent health service for the poor. We brag about our high living standards. This is because successive governments before 1977 invested money on education and health. The recent governments have cut down on health and education expenditure and this has affected our human capital,” he said. (RK)