Federal and provincial governments must declare a medical emergency
LAHORE: When New York faced the onslaught of Covid-19, choking all state-owned health facilities, the governor of the state immediately declared a medical emergency, acquiring all available health facilities to cater to the needs of citizens. The Pentagon complied by placing a fully equipped hospital ship, big enough to accommodate 4,000 beds, at the disposal of the NY state. Hospitalised patients suffering from various ailments were shifted to the ship so that selected hospitals located in the state would cater exclusively to pandemic patients, which prevented the spread of this infectious virus.
Pakistan, with an already insufficient and neglected health infrastructure, faces a far worse situation. The country needs all institutions, meant to serve the people, in the country to pool their resources and provide relief to the people. But, it is unfortunate that the state has currently failed to regulate existing medical health facilities to provide affordable subsidised health care, even in times when a deadly pandemic has infected large numbers, including most deprived sections living in utter poverty.
Federal and provincial governments must declare a medical emergency. We need to learn from what others have done. The government should shift patients suffering from other ailments who require hospitalisation to specific hospitals, while ensuring Covid-19 patients are housed in separate ones. Profiteering in such times must be checked and if any private hospital refuses, the state must enforce its power with force.
Malik Tariq Ali
Published in The Express Tribune, June 20th, 2020.
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