(Finance) – The controversy over the reintegration in hospitals of doctors and health workers not vaccinated against Covid-19 ignites immediately: the Puglia Regionin fact, announces that it will maintain the regional law that provides for the vaccination obligation also against Covid for health professionals and the response of the Undersecretary of Health Marcello arrives immediately Gemmato: the rule will be challenged, he announces. A close response from the president of the region Michele Emiliano who invites the undersecretary to resign calling him “inadequate”. And Campania also announces the hard line.
Here’s what happened – In Puglia, the law that obliges health personnel to be vaccinated also against Covid “exists and remains in force”, reaffirms the Regional Health Councilor, Rocco Palese. The regional law states that unvaccinated health workers cannot be in contact with at-risk patients admitted to hospitals. In fact, the law provides that “in order to prevent and control the transmission of infections to patients, their families, other operators and the community” the Puglia Region identifies “the departments where to allow access only to operators who have complied with the indications of the National Vaccination Prevention Plan in force “. The vaccine obligation for healthcare personnel in Puglia does not only concern Covid but other 10 vaccines, the same ones also provided for by the national plan. A rule that would seem to conflict with the provision approved by the CDM which suspends the vaccination obligation for health professionals, and for which Gemmato has announced the appeal.
Emiliano’s reply is not long in coming: “Gemmato is a long-time politician and he should know that between national laws and regional laws in competing matters such as health care there is no hierarchical relationship that makes the former prevail over the latter, unless there is a violation of the powers of Parliament. But the latter must be promptly challenged by the Government, which did not happen in our case, as the law in question is of 2021 “.
Also there Campania makes a choice inspired by greater prudence: in fact, a directive signed by the president Vincenzo De Luca was sent to the General Managers of the Local Health Authorities and Hospitals, with which “it is obligatory to define the use of unvaccinated health personnel while protecting health of vaccinated patients and operators “. Therefore, it is stated, “the necessary actions aimed at countering any hypothesis of contagion, avoiding direct contact of unvaccinated personnel with patients” will therefore be put in place.
To clarify the return of these sanitary in hospitals, however, it is the same Minister of Health Orazio Schillaci. “I based myself on the fact that today the scenario is completely different and – he explained – there is a serious shortage of staff: it is true that the doctors reinstated will be about 4 thousand, but in the meantime we are starting to make them available to the health departments. the individual health departments will decide it, evaluating the best place where the reinstated doctors will be able to go to work “. You confirm that the reintegration will take place quickly, already within the week.
“Getting unvaccinated doctors back to work right now it’s not risky. Article 32 of the Constitution requires Parliament to define the balance between the rights of the individual and those of the community in matters of health. During the Covid emergency all the parties, with the exclusion of the Brothers of Italy, had reasoned on the prevalence of community law. Now the course of the disease has changed, which is why the government proposes to Parliament the adoption of an act that restores the correct functioning of Article 32 of the Constitution “, says the national president of the National Federation of Medical Orders (Fnomceo), Filippo Anelli.
(Photo: EPA / Biontech)