Seine-Saint-Denis has been refused subsidies for its STD and tuberculosis screening centers by the government. The department is particularly affected by this disease.
The situation is critical in Seine-Saint-Denis (93). Tuesday, August 26, the PS president of the General Council, Stéphane Troussel, announced that the department could no longer provide funding for screening centers for tuberculosis and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). This declaration follows the State’s decision to withdraw the subsidies provided for this purpose.
A public health problem
This aid amounted to 1.5 million euros per year, thus representing 15% of the department’s health budget. Without them, seven centers could close their doors. “This would pose a public health problem with the development of multidrug-resistant forms”, specifies Dr Jeanine Rocherfort, general delegate of the Médecins du monde association, located in Saint Denis.
Indeed, the situation is particularly alarming in this department which is not only one of the poorest in France but above all one of the most affected by tuberculosis and STDs.
In the first line, patients without health cover, with precarious status and not mastering the French language. The state is also considering abolishing the subsidies granted to route screening. These operations allow care in the slums and immigrant homes. “We are in a situation of frenzied economy,” denounces Stéphane Troussel.
31 people per year are affected
Tuberculosis is a contagious disease that usually attacks the lungs, and sometimes other parts of the body, such as the kidneys, lymph nodes and bones. The causes of the disease are multiple: malnutrition, HIV, excessive consumption of alcohol and drugs… Treatment with antibiotics can cure it, provided that the patient demonstrates exemplary compliance. Between 2000 and 2010, Île-de-France declared more than 26,000 cases of tuberculosis. A clear decrease began until 2006, and then stabilized.
In 10 years, the number of cases has increased from 49 to 22 per million inhabitants throughout Ile-de-France with the exception of Seine-Saint-Denis, where 31 people per 100.00 inhabitants are affected by tuberculosis every year. That is four times the national average, according to the National Institute for Public Health Surveillance. The number of STDs is also high there.
In protest against the government, the department severed its health partnership with the state until further notice. The agreement also included screening for certain cancers and vaccinations.
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