At least 250000 people demonstrate in the streets of Madrid over the quality of healthcare provided by the government

On Sunday, hundreds of thousands of Spanish citizens took to the streets to demonstrate against what they see as a failing public healthcare system in the Madrid area.

The government put the number of protesters at around 250,000, while the event’s organisers said as many as a million showed up to show their displeasure.

There has been a massive demonstration in Madrid over public healthcare twice since November; in that same month, primary care physicians and paediatricians went on strike, and they have shown no signs of ending their strike.

Unions for doctors say they are understaffed and overworked, preventing them from giving patients the care they need.

The protest’s organising group, FADSP, claims that last year 27% of Madrid residents with medical issues were unable to make an appointment with their primary care physician.

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“Wants to destroy the healthcare system for all to favour the private sector,” FADSP claims the conservative regional government in Madrid is behind.

Right-wing parties are behind both the protests and the medical strike, according to the conservative regional government.

In a statement released on Sunday, Alfonso Serrano, a politician from the Popular Party, claimed that Madrid has never before invested so much money into its public healthcare system.