Academics argue if Britain leaves the European Union, detrimental health risks loom
Orange County, CA - June 6th 2016 - On June 23rd, a referendum will be held to decide if Britain should leave or remain in the European Union. Polls indicate that those voting—British, Irish, and Commonwealth Citizens—are leaning towards exiting the EU. However, proponents against the measure have been vocal about how leaving the EU can produce negative implications to public health.
A group of 17 academics from the School of Public Health at Imperial College London published an editorial expressing concern for the National Health Service (NHS), Britain’s current universal healthcare system. Specifically, they fear that the recruitment of doctors, healthcare workers, medical researchers, and health academics will wane following a Brexit (Britain Exit).
“The UK currently engages very heavily with other member states of the European Union and with European institutions over many health-related and scientific issues,” said Professor Azeem Majeed, Head of the Department of Primary Care and Public Health at Imperial College.
Currently, the NHS is reinforced by healthcare workers from the European Economic Area, contributing nearly 50,000 medical employees to fill the UK’s workforce shortage. Academics fear that a Brexit could put cross-national research projects at risk. The group cited a breast cancer genome sequencing study, funded by the EU but led from the UK, as an example of what could be lost if the UK left.
“A vote to leave the EU would start an extremely complex programme of negotiations, lasting many years and with uncertain outcomes that would threaten these positive collaborations," Professor Majeed said.
The basis of the academic group’s fears stem from an economic impact analysis performed by Her Majesty’s Treasury. According to the financial examination, the United Kingdom could see a £36 billion a year drop in tax receipts. If this were to occur, the scholars believe it will result in substantial cuts to health and social care.
Conversely, some argue that remaining in the EU will retroactively dismantle the UK’s NHS system, which is funded primarily through taxed pounds. These individuals fear that if the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) between the EU and United States were to pass, the influence of American health corporations could result in privatized healthcare practices, as opposed to their current system. Two European unions—Unite the Union and Trades Union Congress—are prime examples of prominent entities that oppose TTIP for this very reason.
Compromises can be made on either side that could rectify the concerns of each vantage point.
For example, if the UK ultimately votes to remain in the EU and the TTIP is passed, creating a stipulation to protect the NHS from private health corporations could mitigate concerns of negative influence. On the other hand, establishing standardized policies for scientific and healthcare endeavors can easily be crafted to maintain the prosperous relationship between the UK and the EU for research and NHS recruitment.
Prime Minister David Cameron has already taken measures to change the dynamic between the EU and the UK, regardless of the referendum result. A deal made at the beginning of the year, which reconfigures the UK’s status within the EU, will immediately take effect if Britain remains in the group. If a Brexit were to take place, however, the UK will be granted agency to manage their own affairs, a key facet of the movement to quit the EU. In either scenario, shifts to the way public health is administered in the UK are inevitable.
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Academics argue if Britain leaves the European Union, detrimental health risks loom Orange County, CA – June 6th 2016 – On June 23rd, a referendum will be held to decide if Britain should leave or remain in the European Union. Polls indicate that those voting—British, Irish, and Commonwealth Citizens—are leaning towards exiting the EU. However, proponents against […]