The municipal group Junts per Tortosa has expressed its concern regarding the potential integration of Clínica Terres de l’Ebre and Hospital de la Santa Creu de Jesús into the public entity of the Generalitat, Salut Ebre. This operation is part of the budget agreement between ERC and PSC.
The spokesperson for Junts per Tortosa, Meritxell Roigé, lamented the lack of information about the details and consequences of the operation for the professionals, users, and the quality of care at the centers. Roigé attributed this decision to the "inability of the tripartite government of Tortosa to adequately manage the municipal health centers".
If this happens, it will be bad news for the city, because the City Council loses, and therefore, Tortosa loses.
Roigé criticized the local government's reaction, calling it an "absolute lack of respect" towards the works councils, boards of directors, the municipal plenary, and the citizens, for having "dismissed" it with a press release.
The Hospital functioned correctly for 16 years and the Clinic, since its acquisition in 2013, generated a surplus that we reinvested in improvements and quality of care.
The spokesperson recalled that under previous Junts per Tortosa governments, both the Hospital and the Clinic closed with a surplus. In contrast, she pointed out that under the current government, the Hospital has accumulated losses and the Clinic has ended in the red, having spent 90% of the savings from Hospital de Jesús and 76% from the Clinic in just three years.
Junts per Tortosa warns that integration into Salut Ebre would lead to the loss of municipal control and proximity in decision-making, comparing it to the case of Sagessa, where territorial control was reduced. It also anticipates a loss of close relationships with professionals and users, and a possible deterioration of care quality due to the industrialization of processes aimed at reducing costs.
This will end up being another Sagessa.
Roigé insisted that these are historic and strategic facilities for Tortosa, and that a decision of this magnitude cannot be made by a government that did not win the elections and has only one year left in its mandate. Junts per Tortosa will advocate for any decision to prioritize quality of care, professionals, users, and the future of health in Tortosa.
Finally, Roigé demanded immediate explanations from the municipal government regarding this intention and its consequences, addressing the boards of directors, works councils, and the city council plenary.
