With multiple sclerosis forced to take tests privately in Lazio. A wait of days to get in touch with the regional switchboard. And in the end when the Recup responded, the appointment could only be made in another province, months later. This is what happened to the journalist and writer Francesca Mannocchi who reports it in a post on social media.
"Every six months I have to do my Ocrelizumab therapy for Multiple Sclerosis. And every six months I have to repeat a long series of tests and an MRI," he said. "I call the CUP in my region to get an appointment, the cost of which should be covered by the state. For days the pre-recorded message tells me that the lines are jammed and therefore suggests that I call back 'at another time'. Today, finally, they answer. The first available MRI is in July 2025 in Frosinone , in another province, 90 kilometers from my house - he stated in the post - For the two facilities where I usually do MRIs there is no availability and it is not known for how long ."
The answer changes when she calls the clinic where she had her first MRI, asking for costs and availability to do the tests privately: "It costs 680 euros and there is space the day after tomorrow, they answered me - Mannocchi said - with the courtesy reserved for those who pay. And so I made an appointment. Because I need it, because it is urgent, because I am lucky enough to be able to afford it" , wrote the journalist, reiterating that this is "how democracies are demolished", putting in black and white Article 32 of the Italian Constitution : "The Republic protects health as a fundamental right of the individual and in the interest of the community, and guarantees free care to the indigent".
(Online Union)
