Is Health Care Only An Issue When It’s Political? By Marissa Perez

This article interested me as it was about an epidemic disease which we have not talked about in class yet. The title of the article is “Measles and Weasels” and it was written by Huma Yusuf from the New York Times on January 25th of this year. The full article can be found at http://latitude.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/01/25/a-measles-outbreak-in-pakistan-fuels-competition-among-politicians/ . 

In the article, Yusuf writes about how Pakistan has currently been threatened by a measles epidemic. Measles is an infection of the respiratory system caused by a virus and the disease has flu like symptoms as well as a quick-spreading rash. The World Health Organization has recorded 103 children who have died from “pneumonia and other measles-related complications between January 1st and 19th” in Pakistan.

The epidemic has hit the city of Punjab the most severely, Pakistan’s most populous and politically influential province. The author interestingly brings up how the fear of this health crisis has become a political matter in Pakistan. The increasing death rates are raising questions about the prospects of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), which forms the government of Punjab. On a national level, the PML-N is the “leading opposition party to the Pakistan People’s Party, or P.P.P.” Thus, the leaders of the Punjab do not want to be accused with failing to provide healthcare for their citizens. 

Flag of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz 

A consequence of this political matter is the argument that the Punjabi government has played down the risks of a measles epidemic. Contrary to this belief, Shahbaz Sharif, a PML-N leader, has taken action in aid to Punjab’s citizens. The government has launched a public-awareness campaign, as well as stocked up on vaccines and lowered the recommended age for inoculating children.

Those against the PML-N have chosen to use this measles epidemic to their advantage. Advisor to the prime minister on human rights called for Sharif’s resignation stating, “No one in the Punjab government has taken responsibility of the utter failure and lack of governance, especially in the health sector.”

The criticism continues with several past healthcare failures which have occurred in Pakistan. In 2012 more than 40 people across Punjab died after consuming a toxic cough syrup produced locally and several patients died after being prescribed contaminated heart medication at the Punjab Institute of Cardiology. In the midst of all this, the Health Department of Punjab has been in a labor dispute with the Young Doctors’ Association, resulting in major doctors’ strikes.

        Shahbaz Sharif (left) remains determined to defend the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and the healthcare system in Punjab. He is trying to replicate his one big success from last year, when his department managed to curb a dengue fever epidemic. The number of reported cases fell from 21,000 in 2011 to approximately 250 in 2012. In regards to the measles epidemic which is happening now, Yusuf writes that “The patients are just lucky that what’s good for the politicians happens to be good for them, too.”

This article really shows how epidemic diseases affect all aspects of society, including the government and politics. In this case, a measles epidemic was a way to attack another political party. This reminds me of our Black Death unit where we studied several different situations where the disease was being used as a form of bioterrorism. Dating back to 1346, the Mongol Tartar army hurled infected plague victims’ bodies over Caffa’s walls due to financial disagreements. Similarly, a toxin, Agent Orange, was sprayed throughout Vietnam in the late 1960’s, causing major defoliation and disease-infected crops.

Although the measles epidemic in this article is not being used as a direct form of bioterrorism, it has stirred many political feuds. I agree with Yusuf that the measles patients are lucky that the government in Punjab is under high pressure to provide proper healthcare for its citizens. Although this can be seen in a negative light, I think healthcare is inevitably driven by political issues that affect the people. Punjab is suffering from a political dispute and I believe the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz is working its best to improve healthcare for the benefit of the people.