Patients held hostage at a hospital until extortionate bills are paid. A badly hurt child, knocked unconscious by a traffic accident, denied treatment. A patient who died of Covid-19 leaving a medical bill amounting to over $100,000.
These horrifying stories from Kenya, India and Uganda come from a recent Oxfam report detailing the nightmare of life when your health is dependent on private hospitals.
What’s worse, all of these cases come from hospitals supported by British aid money. Much of it flows through British International Investment, formerly known as the CDC Group, a company owned by the British government and used to channel development funds to private sector initiatives abroad.
We need to end the use of aid and development funds to support for-profit healthcare. Please write to the international development minister to demand an end to funding of for-profit healthcare providers now.
Photo: T. Schneider/Shutterstock