OSI Supports Journalists Investigating Health Care for Roma

The OSI Roma Health project collaborated with the Center for Independent Journalism, based in Bucharest, Romania, to support journalists investigating access to health care for Roma. In 2007, a dozen in-depth articles were published in four publications in Romania. The articles detail various issues impacting Roma health, which is disproportionally poorer than that of non-Roma residing in the same communities. The articles bring to light the need to further improve health care for Roma and explore the systems that create unequal access.

The following 2007 articles have been translated in English:

Playing Russian Roulette with Roma Health (Ziarul de Vrancea)
Due to a lack of medical personnel and infrastructure, it is difficult for Roma communities living in Vrancea County, Romania, to access public health services. Statistics indicate a high rate of infant mortality, as well as large numbers of cases involving measles, tuberculosis, lice, and chronic disease. With a national health care system approaching collapse, the Roma are frequently excluded.

Seasonal Workers: The Only Source of Income Is Trade in Scrap Iron and Fruit (Ziarul de Vrancea)
Slobozia Bradului is the third largest community of declared Roma in Romania. Even though they represent more than 70 percent of the population, the Roma there lead a precarious life. More than half do not have medical insurance, and all depend exclusively on trade in fruit and illegal scrap iron for their livelihood. The local Roma complain that the worst place for ethnic discrimination is the maternity ward in the closest city, Focsani.

Souls Without Insurance (Obiectiv-Vocea Brailei)
More than 5,000 Roma in Braila, Romania, do not have health insurance, and only get to see a doctor in emergency cases—often when it is too late. Rather than improving the situation, the government has further endangered the health of Roma communities by passing a new law depriving hundreds of Roma who receive child care assistance from receiving free health insurance.

Ferentari: Life in the Fast Lane (Divers)
A majority of the Roma population in Bucharest live in the Ferentari neighborhood. Thousands live in unsanitary conditions, without the most basic requirements for a healthy life. The average Roma lifespan is much shorter than that of non-Roma. Most frequently, death is attributed to heart conditions, cancer, various accidents, neurological conditions, and lung diseases. Similarly the Roma are at higher risk of developing liver conditions and various transmittable diseases.

Nocrich: The European Community of the Roma in Romania (Dacii Liberi)
The success of the Roma community in the town of Nocrich has made it an anomaly in Romania. A Roma health mediator has organized courses to train a new generation of health mediators. More than 20 Roma community members have been trained and will help the mediators currently operating in the town.

Luncile—the Roma Village That Is Losing Ground (Ziarul de Vrancea)
Ninety percent of people receiving public assistance in the region are from Luncile. There are no adequate farm lots in Luncile, and neighboring communities discriminate against the Roma and will not hire them to work on their farms. Families live in anxiety, especially when it rains and their huts slide a few more centimeters down the mountain slope.

Timboiesti: Welfare Revisions Leave Roma Without Medical Insurance (Ziarul de Vrancea)
Sixty percent of Timboiesti's inhabitants are of Roma origin. Changes in the public assistance laws have caused hundreds of Roma to be excluded from the health insurance system. Many are learning to live without medical care; others are making very difficult compromises.

Sihlea: Poverty Decimates a Forest (Ziarul de Vrancea)
In Romania, the health problems of Roma are more effectively taken care of in areas where the number of Roma is not very high. This is illustrated in the poor community of Sihlea, where many Roma men make their incomes by illegally cutting and selling trees from the nearby forest. Family doctor Cristina Cocirlea, who has worked in Sihlea for 16 years, says she has had to act not only as a doctor, but also “a confidant, a psychologist, and sometimes a police officer.”