Economy experts call for a healthcare investment increase of 12 billion euros in Spain
A report by the Cercle d'Economia urges spending on healthcare system to be matched with Europe
BarcelonaThe covid-19 has tested the healthcare system, and in view of all the shortcomings it has brought to light, solutions are needed. This is the conclusion of the Cercle d'Economia, which sees it as essential to place the health system in the spotlight in order to face the coronavirus crisis, and overcome it with prosperity. To do so, they ask for an increase of 12,240 million euros in healthcare investment, so that Spain's public spending in this area equals that of Europe: currently, in the Spanish state it is at 8.9% of the GDP, and the European average is 9.9%.
The conclusions of the Cercle d'Economia have been prepared by a commission of nine specialists who have projected the needs of the state health system up to 5 years from now. "It will not be easy, but we must go further. Preventing is always better than curing", said Andreu Mas-Colell, president of the commission of experts that prepared the report, and former Minister of Economy of the Generalitat.
The presentation of the report took place at a ceremony attended by the Minister of Health, Salvador Illa; the Secretary of Health of the Government of Catalonia, Marc Ramentol; the President of the Cotec Foundation, Cristina Garmendia; the former Minister of Economy of the Government and current President of the Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology (BIST), Andreu Mas-Colell; the President of the Cercle d'Economia, Javier Faus, and the Secretary of Industry of the Spanish Government, Raül Blanco.
In fact, the industry sector is one of the areas on which a large part of the report focuses, and it has also played a leading role in this afternoon's debate. Both Blanco and Ramentol agreed that the health industry must be strengthened so that next time companies do not have to vary their production to help with health issues - as it happened at the beginning of the pandemic, when Seat began making breathing machines, or textile factories began producing masks.
