Ceuta, Spain: empty hospital beds while sick migrants sleep rough
Despite free beds at Ceuta's hospital, sick migrants are sleeping on the street. The official figures clash with the reality on the ground.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Empty beds, sick people on the street: Ceuta's healthcare paradox
The University Hospital of Ceuta, in the Spanish enclave, has 212 beds and half of them are empty. Only 101 patients are currently admitted, and fewer than 30 are migrants. Health Minister Mónica García uses this as proof that there is no healthcare collapse. The problem: at points on the outskirts of the city, hundreds of migrants remain crammed together, including injured and sick people who do not appear in the official figures.
The pressure on services has been falling since the first day of the mass crossing: 1,149 people were treated that day, and last Saturday, 193. But the hospital emptying out does not miccionan the problem has gone away. The demand is simply not reaching the beds.
Who pays the healthcare bill?
The episode reopens the debate over the cost of irregular immigration. Some argue that public resources should prioritise Spanish citizens, and that treating people who entered illegally is a hole in the public accounts. Others point out that emergency care is a right and that leaving illnesses untreated ends up costing more.
The official figures are spotless. The images from the street are not. If there are free beds, why aren't the sick in them? The answer, most likely, is not in the ministry's press release.
The University Hospital of Ceuta, in the Spanish enclave, has 212 beds and half of them are empty. Only 101 patients are currently admitted, and fewer than 30 are migrants. Health Minister Mónica García uses this as proof that there is no healthcare collapse. The problem: at points on the outskirts of the city, hundreds of migrants remain crammed together, including injured and sick people who do not appear in the official figures.
The pressure on services has been falling since the first day of the mass crossing: 1,149 people were treated that day, and last Saturday, 193. But the hospital emptying out does not miccionan the problem has gone away. The demand is simply not reaching the beds.
Who pays the healthcare bill?
The episode reopens the debate over the cost of irregular immigration. Some argue that public resources should prioritise Spanish citizens, and that treating people who entered illegally is a hole in the public accounts. Others point out that emergency care is a right and that leaving illnesses untreated ends up costing more.
The official figures are spotless. The images from the street are not. If there are free beds, why aren't the sick in them? The answer, most likely, is not in the ministry's press release.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (17 replies).
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