Cardiovascular Disease
The medical treatment for not only India’s number one killer but the world’s number one killer, cardiovascular disease, is in most cases unattainable for the people of Annawadi because the corruption that exists within India’s public hospitals. Thus, the people of Annawadi are being denied the basic human right of adequate healthcare. Although serious diseases like tuberculosis and malaria run rampant, cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of death in India, and it is still on the rise. The projections of the World Bank are that the number of deaths due to cardiovascular disease in India will double from 1985 to 2015. As stated in Article 25 of the Declaration of Human Rights, “ Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and his family, including…medical care”. Despite this proclamation in the Declaration of Human Rights that mandates that the citizens of Annawadi should be able to receive medical care, such is not the case.
In Katherine Boo’s, Behind the Beautiful Forevers, Mr. Kamble, a friend of Asha’s, comes to her home begging her for help with his cardiovascular disease. The Mumbai public hospital doctors were illegally demanding under-the-table money for the necessary operation, which Mr. Kamble was unable to pay. He was placed in the position of being forced to go to Asha and ask her for a government loan. These government loans were scams that were supposed to go to small businesses, but slum-dwellers were being granted government loans as long as the government official and bank manager were funneled a portion of the money in return. Mr. Kamble was trying to convince Asha to grant him the loan for his fake food stall business so he could pay for the heart operation. Asha politely declined his proposal by recommending that he go pray in the temple. Even though Mr. Kamble is entitled to adequate medical care through Article 25 of the Declaration of Human Rights, the corruption within Mumbai’s government has forced him to raise fifty thousand rupees, which amounted to payment of a bribe, for the operation.
The problem of cardiovascular disease as the leading cause of death is not unique to India as cardiovascular disease is actually the number one cause of death in the world. With cardiovascular disease being a global health problem, the health crisis of the Annawadi people, such as Mr. Kamble, is not unusual. India, competing with other countries, has become a leader in heart related surgeries, using the most technologically advanced surgeries and techniques for a fraction of what it costs in other countries. A heart operation in the United States can cost up to ten times more than the cost in India. India is leading the way in heart care and surgery, yet it has a unique problem of corruption within its public hospitals that prevents it from rendering care to the poor.
To Learn more about the dangers of cardiovascular disease in India make sure you follow @IndiasGoodHeart on Twitter (link in top right corner of page).
In Katherine Boo’s, Behind the Beautiful Forevers, Mr. Kamble, a friend of Asha’s, comes to her home begging her for help with his cardiovascular disease. The Mumbai public hospital doctors were illegally demanding under-the-table money for the necessary operation, which Mr. Kamble was unable to pay. He was placed in the position of being forced to go to Asha and ask her for a government loan. These government loans were scams that were supposed to go to small businesses, but slum-dwellers were being granted government loans as long as the government official and bank manager were funneled a portion of the money in return. Mr. Kamble was trying to convince Asha to grant him the loan for his fake food stall business so he could pay for the heart operation. Asha politely declined his proposal by recommending that he go pray in the temple. Even though Mr. Kamble is entitled to adequate medical care through Article 25 of the Declaration of Human Rights, the corruption within Mumbai’s government has forced him to raise fifty thousand rupees, which amounted to payment of a bribe, for the operation.
The problem of cardiovascular disease as the leading cause of death is not unique to India as cardiovascular disease is actually the number one cause of death in the world. With cardiovascular disease being a global health problem, the health crisis of the Annawadi people, such as Mr. Kamble, is not unusual. India, competing with other countries, has become a leader in heart related surgeries, using the most technologically advanced surgeries and techniques for a fraction of what it costs in other countries. A heart operation in the United States can cost up to ten times more than the cost in India. India is leading the way in heart care and surgery, yet it has a unique problem of corruption within its public hospitals that prevents it from rendering care to the poor.
To Learn more about the dangers of cardiovascular disease in India make sure you follow @IndiasGoodHeart on Twitter (link in top right corner of page).