Majority support argument of striking medical staff

Six out of 10 Panamanians disagree with hiring foreign doctors and technicians, as decided by the Government with Law 69 of October 2, 2013.

This was revealed by the latest survey commissioned by La Prensa  and carried out by Quantix Panama SA, between October 11 and 13 with a margin of error of plus or minus 2.81 percentage points.

About 3 out of 10  favor the measure, with the remaining respondents saying they did not know the answer to the question or did not answer.
The survey, which was applied to 1,200 throughout the will be published in full on Wednesday October 23 in the supplement Pulse of the Nation.
The recruitment of foreign health professionals prompted the health sector began a strike on 26 September.
Medical leaders of National Negotiating Medical Commission are demanding the repeal of Act 69 because, they argue , it undermines job stability and allows the privatization of public health services.
The doctors, supported by nurses and health technicians, call for the repeal of the law to engage in dialogue.

The president , Ricardo Martinelli, has asked the Catholic Church to broker an agreement, but by regulating the standard scenario rejected by the medical leadership.
The Government argues that the Act 69 not only guarantees the stability of national professionals, but will also allow doctors to properly address the country's interior .