Budget cuts in Vaud health announced by the government this summer have strongly reacted the Grand Council. The deputies largely voted on Tuesday a resolution asking the Council of State to reverse on the overall cup of 20 million francs, fearing for regional hospitals and therefore local care.
At a time when the financial situation of the canton of Vaud requires sanitation measures, subsidy discounts for all partners of the Directorate General of Health (DGS) are necessary. Helters were sent to the partners concerned, had confirmed in mid-July the Department of Health and Social Action (DSAS).
The Federation of Vaudois hospitals (FHV), which oversees the twelve regional hospitals of the canton, then said in shock. Several parties and unions had also reacted in the process, all worried about the benefits of the population and for the staff of these establishments in peripheral regions.
Certain structures such as the health centers of the Pays-d’Enhaut and the Joux valley could lose up to 25 to 30% of their budget, according to the FHV. Many layoffs could result from it, knowing that the 70-75% of the costs of these hospitals are made up of staff.
“Put to death”
On Tuesday at the Grand Council, these concerns were relayed by the deputy UDC Céline Baux and the resolution which she defended before the plenum. “The sky fell on the head of these regional establishments (…) These 20 million economies imposed on the FHV are on the back of the peripheral regions,” she said. “This is equivalent to the killing of these health poles,” added the elected representative of the Pays-d’Enhaut.
“The mission of health centers have a certain cost, but they are necessary for local care,” she insisted. Its resolution therefore wants to encourage the canton to reverse the cuts announced. “It is equity between the Vaud population in terms of access to care,” she said.
Each political group then spoke, all the parties supporting the resolution. MP PLR and president of the FHV, Carole Dubois, spoke of “serious consequences”, “services which will be abolished” or even “a risk of closing of the two health centers (Valley of Joux and Pays-d’Enhaut). She demanded the opening of a dialogue with the government on the amount of the cups.
For her part, the deputy PLR Florence Gross regretted that certain establishments be put aside by the resolution.
On the left, we denounced “short-termist measures”, “an ineptie with serious and direct consequences”, “a reinforced inequality as to access to care” or “two-speed medicine”. “You have to strengthen and not break the public service,” summed up the elected official of the radical left (EP) Vincent Keller. “We cannot arbitrarily cut in the small local hospitals,” said deputy UDC Cédric Weissert.
“Lack of courage, finesse and exemplarity”
Many elected officials intervened in the debate. Many denounced the way of communicating in the middle of summer. “A lack of finesse,” said the green’libéral David Vogel, adding “a lack of courage and a lack of exemplarity”, in reference respectively to the side “do, do less with 25-30%” and “the disability of the government to impose cost and charges” within the cantonal administration itself.
The only representative of the Council of State at the time of the debate, the centrist minister Valérie Dittli, who is not in charge of health, did not wish to speak on behalf of the government on the subject. In the vote, the resolution was accepted by 117 yes and sixteen abstentions.
As a reminder, the Council of State announced sanitation measures up to 94 million in 2025. The 2026 budget will be strongly impacted with savings of around 300 to 400 million to respect the legal framework for small balance.
Keystone ATS with Sophie Vassin
