Thursday, 24 March 2016

How would a BREXIT affect Health and Social Care in the UK?


“The British people will not be dictated to by others”. According to the German Finance Minister, leaving the EU would be ‘poison’ for the UK, European and global economies that would last for years.


The Guardians’ first live debate on the EU referendum that took place on the 15th March recorded more cheers for BREXIT than it did for BREMAIN. But there is still a significant amount of people who don’t know which way to vote. The most recent poll from the Telegraph however shows a different result, with 49% of voters opting to leave the EU.


 Lynton Crosby believes that voters can see risk on both sides:

The risk of leaving is the damage that could be caused to the UK economy. The risk of staying is the uncontrolled immigration that could result. More than 3 quarters of the remain voters actually expect that the UK will stay in the EU, including nearly a quarter who are not likely to vote, but still expect the rest of the UK will vote to remain.

UKIP leader Nigel Farage said ‘staying in the EU would drag Britain into a political union with turkey’ leading to 77 million even poorer people entering the country. But would this actually happen?

On the other hand, former minister Nick Herbert warned that leaving the EU would put investment at risk, undermine policing and security and jeopardise access to European markets. The key long term challenge of how to deliver health and social care with an ageing population would not suddenly be solved by the UK leaving the EU.

Education secretary Nicky Morgan worries that young brits could find themselves cut off from the world. If we were to leave the EU their prospects would be limited and opportunities would end at our shores.

What effect will a BREXIT have on health and social care?

When it comes to health and social care, there are many concerns surrounding the referendum. The Guardian has reported fears that a BREXIT could undermine the rights of the 10 million people in Britain who are currently living with a disability.

The article goes on to say treatments have been developed through European research, for diseases so rare that no one country could have done it alone, highlighting the benefits of being a part of the EU.

Brits can currently visit any country within the EU and be guaranteed the same health services at the same cost to a local. What will happen to healthcare if we were no longer in the EU? Would we be charged a premium? Would we still be able to use the European Health Insurance Card (Ehic)?

BREXIT and the disabled

The Disability News Service has recently published an article: More disabled people have come forward to argue that a decision to quit the European Union (EU) would harm disability rights in the UK. In 2015, 87,000 British people with a disability were helped towards employment by European Social Funding.

Former government adviser Miro Griffiths believes that a BREXIT would have ‘dire consequences for disabled people’.  At the moment, millions of Euros are spent on combating poverty, supporting independent living and challenging injustice in the UK through the European Social Fund.

Debbie Jolly wrote in her blog ‘disabled people and European non-governmental organisations are the ones that fight for disability rights, but being in the EU can help extend those rights and help to fund our battles’. She goes on to say, other countries too have significant battles and a BREXIT would mean ‘rejecting our disabled European friends and significantly weakening our own fight too’.

Many Personal Assistants and other care workers in the UK are from other parts of the EU and there is a risk that a BREXIT would see the value of the pound fall, making it far less profitable for them to stay working here and sending money back to their families in other countries.

So what should we do?
There are so many arguments both for and against a BREXIT. Let us know your thoughts and opinions and leave a comment below.

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