Jujuy asked Bolivia to compensate for gas health care offered to Bolivian citizens

The governor of Jujuy Gerardo Morales Bolivia has demanded that it send shipments of gas to its province in compensation for the health care provided by its hospitals to Bolivian citizens. and stressed that this request addressed to the government of Evo Morales would be subordinated to the realization of a reciprocal agreement on health that can be implemented by Argentina and Bolivia from the 1st April.

"The only thing we wish is that Argentines are treated the same way in Bolivia as we do with them in Jujuy hospitals," Morales said during a conversation with Infobae After the meeting held yesterday in Santa Cruz de la Sierra with the Bolivian authorities to try to reach an agreement on the conflict on health care in both countries.

During the meeting with Bolivia's deputy foreign minister, María del Carmen Almendras, and the Minister of Health, Gabriela Montaño, the governor of Jujuy proposed to the Bolivian authorities to set up a system of compensation of care gas for hospitals and first aid rooms. jugeñas

"During the past year, for the health care provided to Bolivian citizens, we have spent 160 million pesos and we are therefore asking for a refund, which can be at the essence, item we need ", explained Morales.

According to the governor of Jujuy, hospitals in his province last year carried out 200 chemotherapy interventions for Bolivians, 85 dialysis and 54,000 medical consultations. For all this, Jujuy now claims 160 million pesos to the government of Evo Morales.

Governor Morales also pointed out that on April 1, his province would begin to set up a health care collection system for foreigners from countries not having a reciprocal agreement with Argentina. This is the specific case of Bolivia, since a cooperation agreement in the field of health has been concluded with Chile.

Morales' new attack in Bolivia comes two weeks after Argentinian musician Manuel Vilca, victim of a road accident in Oruro, was treated at the hospital. they charged him $ 20,000 for medical care, although in his country, this service is free for Bolivians. There, Morales sent a firm letter to the President of Bolivia, summoning him for the affair and reminding him of the number of Bolivians who had been served free of charge in Jujuy in recent years.

In any case, the governor of Jujuy said that if no agreement was reached for Bolivia to agree to finalize a health reciprocal agreement with Argentina, the resources allocated by his province to the care of Bolivians in hospitals would be compensated with gas.

In principle, it is quite possible for Bolivia to agree on 1 March to include Argentines in transit in its universal health system. At the yesterday's meeting of the governments of Bolivia and Argentina, it was decided to create a technical commission so that before the six a reciprocal health agreement that includes emergency health care for foreigners and the provision of high risks in both countries.

After a long meeting yesterday in Santa Cruz de la Sierra between Argentinian Secretary of Health Adolfo Rubinstein and his Bolivian counterpart Gabriela Montaño and Bolivia's Vice Chancellor María del Carmen Almendras Ambbadador of Argentina. The governments of the two countries, Normando Álvarez García, have decided to set up a technical commission to develop, over the next six months, a system of reciprocity in health care for non-resident citizens of both countries.

From now on, the technical commission will aim to work on the reciprocal agreement on health between the two countries and, as discussed today, should consider two essential issues: care in case of health emergency of non-residents and health care. high risk

In order not to doubt Bolivia's intention to solve this problem, Minister Montaño said that the work of the commission would constitute "a clear road map" for the implementation of "clear operational mechanisms".

For his part, Rubinstein said that the commission would deal with all controversial issues that may arise in this area, for example, the recently approved law in the province of Jujuy, bordering Bolivia. who created a provincial system. insurance for foreigners, which establishes the payment of badistance to Bolivians or other persons who do not reside in Argentina.