The leader of SYRIZA Alexis Tsipras has demanded that the government withdraw its healthcare bill, which he dubbed a “present to private interests”, after meeting with the board of directors of the EOPYY doctor union.
Mr. Tsipras explained that the bill was a “time bomb” as thousands of people would be added to the current 3 million uninsured Greek people without access to healthcare, if EOPYY were to shut down. The opposition leader urged coalition government MPs to rebel against the bill.
According to Mr. Tsipras the healthcare bill was mandated by the troika and as such its content is completely against the interests of Greek society, which needs a complete overhaul of the public health care system. Mr. Tsipras expressed his support of the EOPYY doctor strike while asserting that it is a struggle in order to preserve public healthcare.
The EOPYY doctor union president Panagiotis Psycharis thanked the opposition leader and estimated that the government’s controversial bill would further deteriorate the public healthcare system and lead to doctor dismissals.
