“Patients,” More Than Ever

A health crisis caused by the lack of agreement between Paraguay’s government and medical unions is making an already critical public health situation worse. The people with the fewest resources are being asked to be “patients” more than ever, while the sectors involved put the system under pressure.

The column points to the empty corridors of enormous hospital buildings in Encarnación, ironically deserted during the city’s busiest period. What is the use of having the largest hospital in Itapúa if there are no doctors to treat patients? The consequences of failing to resolve the crisis, it warns, could be more serious than a seemingly simple contest of egos between political or partisan groups.

The writer examines both sides through the question of whether the end justifies the means. Medical unions seek what they describe as a greater benefit, but their actions also put the stability of the health system at risk. The state, meanwhile, refuses to yield in negotiations and allows the measures to affect the system, apparently hoping that public indifference and pressure will eventually demobilize doctors. From an ethical perspective, the column invokes Immanuel Kant’s view that some acts are wrong in themselves and cannot become right because they produce a positive result.

The person who needs public health care does not choose that dependence. Someone who is sick and has limited resources cannot simply choose another provider. Without assistance, that person can die. Data from the National Statistics Institute’s 2025 Permanent Household Survey show that 68.2% of the national population had access to health care in 2025. Of 2,249,673 people who were sick or injured, about 1,533,268 received care.

Only 31% of the population had medical insurance, the column adds. About 1,912,700 people had coverage out of a total population of 6,168,287. Nearly 70% of Paraguayans therefore potentially depend on the public health system. Every crisis harms those with the fewest tools to defend themselves. The solution cannot wait or depend on the caprices of any sector. For now, the people remain “patients,” numbed by years of institutional indifference.

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Patients