World

Cancer patient’s long wait for treatment highlights frustration with UK government as election nears

Published

2 days ago

June 28, 2024

Cancer patient’s long wait for treatment highlights frustration with UK government as election nears

LONDON (AP) — Nathaniel Dye believes he probably won’t live to see Britain’s next election. But the music teacher diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer is doing everything he can to make sure the Labour Party wins this one.

Dismayed by delays in his diagnosis by the National Health Service, the 38-year-old says he feels let down by the Conservative-led government, which health policy experts say has failed to adequately fund the NHS. As a result, he played a central role in the launch of Labour’s election platform earlier this month, going on national television to urge voters to back the party.

Nathaniel Dye shows his body scan photos at home in London, Tuesday, June 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

“I’ve seen underfunding of the NHS and mismanagement of the NHS cause real problems in the way I’ve been treated,” he told The Associated Press. “And I suppose I consider it the most natural thing in the world to talk to people on a personal level and say, ‘What can we do to improve things?’”

Dye’s story illustrates voters’ frustration with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Conservative Party, which opinion polls show is significantly trailing in parliamentary elections set for July 4.

After 14 years of Conservative-led government, voters blame the party for the litany of problems facing Britain, from sewage spills and unreliable train service to the cost-of-living crisis, crime and the rise in migrants entering the country illegally after crossing the English Channel on inflatable boats.

But no public service is as central to life in the United Kingdom as the NHS, and it is failing to deliver on its promise to provide free health care to everyone.

Over 50 countries go to the polls in 2024

The NHS is creaking under the weight of an aging and growing population, years of funding constraints, and fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic. That means people are waiting longer for everything from primary care appointments to elective surgery and cancer treatment. Some 52% of people were dissatisfied with the NHS last year, 29 percentage points higher than in 2020, according to the British Social Attitudes Survey, conducted annually since 1983.

That is good news for Labour, according to Tim Bale, a professor of politics at Queen Mary University of London.

The Labour Party election manifesto is seen at Nathaniel Dye’s home in London, Tuesday, June 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

“The Conservatives have got nothing to crow about,” he said. “People’s lived experience of the NHS is very, very negative at the moment. However, they retain a great deal of faith in the NHS, and they want to elect a government that they think is going to rescue it.”

Founded by a Labour government in 1947 to fulfill the Conservatives’ wartime pledge to build a fairer society for the men and women who fought to preserve democracy during World War II, the NHS has virtually untouchable status.

If you are British, chances are you were born in an NHS hospital and got your childhood vaccines from a doctor paid by the NHS. If you have a heart attack, you call NHS paramedics and are transported to the hospital in an NHS ambulance. Should you be diagnosed with cancer or any other disease, NHS specialists will likely treat you. And you will never receive a bill.

But because the NHS is so much a part of people’s daily lives, it is also the most glaring example of how the social contract in Britain is fraying.

Since the Conservatives came to power in 2010, the U.K. budget has been buffeted by the global financial crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine and inflation, all of which increased government expenditures, slowed economic growth and curtailed revenue.

As a result, the health care budget has grown by an average of 2.8% annually over the past eight years, compared with 3.6% over the previous 50 years.

A London Marathon finisher’s medal is seen at Nathaniel Dye’s home in London, Tuesday, June 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Nathaniel Dye plays trombone during an interview in London, Tuesday, June 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

That has squeezed the NHS at a time when demand for its services is rising. On top of that, the NHS is still recovering from the pandemic, which forced many people to defer treatment as doctors and hospitals focused on COVID-19.

In March, more than 7.54 million people in England were waiting for elective surgery such as cataract removals or hip replacements, 65% more than before the pandemic.

But the problems extend far beyond elective surgery.

Newspapers are filled with stories of people waiting weeks to get appointments with their family doctors, children being hospitalized for emergency tooth extractions because they weren’t able to get preventive dental care, and patients who spend hours in the back of ambulances waiting for emergency room backups to clear.

All of that translates to higher avoidable mortality rates than in other major developed nations except the United States, driven by below-average survival rates for many types of cancer, heart attacks and strokes, according to The King’s Fund, an independent think tank devoted to improving health care.

Reversing those trends is the top priority for most voters, said Charlotte Wickens, a policy adviser at the fund.

“And it’s because everyone experiences ill health and everyone needs NHS services,” she said. “Whoever forms the next government will have to do something to change the situation that the health service finds itself in.”

The Conservatives say many of the pressures on the NHS are out of their control and have promised to build 50 diagnostic hubs around the country and boost funding by more than inflation during each year of the next government. Labour plans to tackle the backlogs by spending 1 billion pounds ($1.27 billion) to fund 40,000 more operations, scans and appointments each week, while pledging to train thousands of new general practitioners.

But fixing the NHS will take more than money.

It needs to rethink the way it provides care, making better use of technology and focusing on keeping people healthy, rather than treating them once they get sick, according to The King’s Fund.

Without such changes, more people will have stories like Dye’s.

Dye, who used to run ultramarathons, first sought medical help after he noticed that he was getting slower and slower for no apparent reason.

After blood tests and a stool sample that revealed he might have cancer, Dye experienced several delays before he began chemotherapy.

“Amongst all that is this quiet, uneasy truth that I waited over 100 days in total, from GP contact to having chemotherapy … and the target is 62,’’ he said. “And it’s possible that that wait will shorten my life.”

Nathaniel Dye poses for a photograph during an interview in London, Tuesday, June 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)

Tests this week found that Dye was tumor free. But he considers it a temporary reprieve because chances are high that his cancer will return. Doctors say only about 10% of patients in this situation survive for five years.

“I don’t know exactly what needs to happen to give people better outcomes, but I can certainly use my example to say we really need to push for that as soon as possible,” he said.

Dye hopes to do that by telling his story with dark humor that softens the ugly details.

Before becoming an advocate for Labour, Dye focused on raising money for cancer charities, including running the London Marathon while using a colostomy bag and playing a green trombone. He took requests along the route.

His playlist included “Livin’ on a Prayer.”

Outdoing many healthy people who weren’t encumbered by musical instruments, he completed the 26.2-mile course.

“You could say that … there’s no point in me getting politically involved, I’m not going to see the result,” he said. “But I don’t care because I think it comes down to hope.”

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World

US Supreme Court's slow pace on immunity makes Trump trial before election unlikely

Published

5 hours ago

June 30, 2024

Press Room

US Supreme Court's slow pace on immunity makes Trump trial before election unlikely

Donald Trump’s bid for criminal immunity from prosecution for trying to overturn his 2020 election loss is set to be decided on Monday by the U.S. Supreme Court. But however it rules, the court already has helped the former president in his effort to avoid trial before the Nov. 5 election.

World

Bolivia grapples with aftermath of failed coup attempt as nation strives to restore stability

Published

6 hours ago

June 30, 2024

Press Room

Bolivia grapples with aftermath of failed coup attempt as nation strives to restore stability

Bolivia has been left reeling after troops, led by General Juan José Zúñiga, briefly seized the presidential palace in La Paz during an attempted coup.
Military forces seized control of La Paz using armored vehicles and tear gas against protesters.
Authorities arrested Zúñiga as his soldiers retreated from central La Paz.

Calm returned to Bolivia’s capital on Thursday after troops led by a top general stormed the presidential palace, then quickly retreated, tumultuous scenes that threatened to pitch the long-troubled South American democracy into chaos.

The nation of 12 million watched in shock and bewilderment Wednesday as Bolivian military forces appeared to turn on the government of President Luis Arce, seizing control of the capital’s main square with armored personnel carriers, crashing a tank into the palace and unleashing tear gas on protesters who flooded the streets.

The country’s army chief, Gen. Juan José Zúñiga, addressed a scrum of TV reporters from the palace, vowing to “restore democracy,” replace the cabinet, and free political prisoners.

BOLIVIAN PRESIDENT SURVIVES FAILED COUP, CALLS FOR ‘DEMOCRACY TO BE RESPECTED,’ ARMY GENERAL ARRESTED

But as opposition leaders condemned the apparent coup attempt, it became clear that the coup had no meaningful political support. Arce refused to relent and named a new army commander, who immediately ordered troops to stand down, ending the rebellion after just three chaotic and head-snapping hours. Hundreds of Arce’s supporters rushed the square outside the palace, waving Bolivian flags, singing the national anthem and cheering.

Bolivian police hold the detained Juan Jose Zuniga, former general commander of the Army, in La Paz, Bolivia, on June 26, 2024. Calm returned to Bolivia’s capital on Thursday after troops led by a top general stormed the presidential palace, then quickly retreated, tumultuous scenes that threatened to pitch the long-troubled South American democracy into chaos. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)

“Here we are, firm, in the presidential palace, to confront any coup attempt,” Arce said after facing down Gen. Zúñiga, calling on Bolivians to mobilize in defense of democracy.

Authorities swiftly arrested Zúñiga as his soldiers retreated from central La Paz, crushing the apparent coup attempt and defusing the latest crisis in a country wracked by a bitter political rivalry and economic crisis.

“Their goal was to overturn the democratically elected authority,” Government Minister Eduardo del Castillo told journalists in announcing the arrests of Zúñiga along with an alleged co-conspirator, former navy Vice Adm. Juan Arnez Salvador.

BOLIVIAN PRESIDENT WARNS ‘IRREGULAR’ MILITARY DEPLOYMENT UNDERWAY IN CAPITAL, RAISING COUP FEARS

The short-lived rebellion followed months of mounting tensions between Arce and his one-time ally, former President Evo Morales. Bolivia’s first Indigenous president, Morales remains a global leftist icon and towering figure in national politics years after mass protests that prompted him to resign and flee in 2019 — an ouster his supporters view as a coup.

Since returning from exile, Morales has staged a dramatic political comeback. Threatening to challenge Arce in 2025 primaries, Morales has sparked an unprecedented rift in their ruling socialist party. The feud has paralyzed efforts to resolve a spiraling economic crisis, with the country’s foreign currency reserves diminishing, its natural gas exports plummeting and its currency peg collapsing.

Police hold the detained Juan Arnez Salvador, ex-commander general of the Bolivian Navy, in La Paz, Bolivia, on June 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)

As police in riot gear set up blockades outside the presidential palace, Bolivians — though no stranger to political conflict in a country that has witnessed some 190 coups by one count — thronged ATMs, formed long lines outside gas stations and emptied shelves in grocery stores and pharmacies.

Flanked by the newly appointed military chiefs late Wednesday, Defense Minister Edmundo Novillo sought to reassure the rattled public and shed light on what had happened.

The turmoil began earlier this week, Novillo said, when Arce dismissed Zuñiga in a private meeting Tuesday over the army chief’s threats to arrest Morales if he proceeded with his presidential bid in 2025. In their meeting, Novillo said that Zuñiga gave officials no indication he was preparing to seize power.

“He admitted that he had committed some excesses,” Novillo said of Zuñiga. “We said goodbye in the most friendly way, with hugs. Zuñiga said that he would always be at the side of the president.”

The frantic palace takeover began hours later. Tailed by armored vehicles and supporters, Zuñiga burst into government headquarters and declared that he was sick of political infighting. “The armed forces intend to restore the democracy,” he said.

Supporters of Bolivian President Luis Arce enter Plaza Murillo amid tear gas launched by military police in La Paz, Bolivia, on June 26, 2024. (AP Photo/Juan Karita)

Members of the country’s fragmented opposition, which Zuñiga claimed to support, rejected the coup before it was clear it had failed. Former interim President Jeanine Áñez, detained for her role in Morales’ 2019 ouster, said that soldiers sought to “destroy the constitutional order” but appealed to both Arce and Morales not to run in the 2025 elections.

The mutiny by a lifelong member of the military with a low political profile stirred confusion. Just before his arrest, Zúñiga claimed that President Arce himself had asked the general to storm the palace in a ploy to boost the embattled leader’s popularity.

“The president told me: ‘The situation is very screwed up, very critical. It is necessary to prepare something to raise my popularity,’” Zúñiga quoted the Bolivian leader as saying.

Justice Minister Iván Lima denied Zúñiga’s claims, insisting the general was lying to justify his actions. Prosecutors will seek the maximum sentence of 15 to 20 years in prison for Zúñiga on charges of “attacking the constitution,” he said.

Analysts said that, more than anything, Wednesday’s events underscored the weakness of Bolivia’s democratic institutions.

“This grants control to the military and erodes democracy and is an important signpost that the problems of the 2019 coup have not been addressed,” said Kathryn Ledebur, director of the Andean Information Network, a Bolivia-based research group. “Bolivia’s democracy remains very fragile, and definitely a great deal more fragile today than it was yesterday.”

World

Caribbean braces for ‘very dangerous’ Hurricane Beryl

Published

6 hours ago

June 30, 2024

Press Room

Caribbean braces for ‘very dangerous’ Hurricane Beryl

DEVELOPING STORY,

Storm begins to shut down southeast Caribbean amid urgent pleas from government officials for people to take shelter.

Much of the southeast Caribbean is on alert as Beryl strengthens into the first hurricane of the 2024 Atlantic season, with forecasters warning of a “very dangerous” Category 3 storm.

The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said Beryl – churning in the Atlantic Ocean about 675km (420 miles) east of Barbados – at 12:30 GMT on Sunday was expected to bring “life-threatening winds and storm surge” when it reaches the Windward Islands early on Monday.

Barbados, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada were all under hurricane warnings, while tropical storm warnings or watches were in effect for Martinique, Tobago and Dominica, the NHC said in its latest advisory.

Cars were seen lined up at filling stations in the Barbadian capital, Bridgetown, while supermarkets and grocery stores were crowded with shoppers buying food, water and other supplies. Some households were already boarding up their properties.

Beryl is now only the third Category 3 hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic in June, following Audrey in 1957 and Alma in 1966, according to hurricane expert Michael Lowry.

“Only five major [Category 3+] hurricanes have been recorded in the Atlantic before the first week of July. Beryl would be the sixth and earliest this far east in the tropical Atlantic,” Lowry posted on X.

‘Devastating wind damage expected’

The NHC said by about 5am (09:00 GMT) on Sunday, Beryl’s maximum sustained wind speed had increased to nearly 100mph (160kmph) with higher gusts. Such a powerful storm forming this early in the Atlantic hurricane season – which runs from early June to late November – is extremely rare, experts said.

“Hurricane conditions are expected in the hurricane warning area beginning early on Monday,” the NHC said, warning of heavy rain, flooding and storm surge that could raise water levels as much as 9 feet (2.7 metres) above normal.

“Devastating wind damage is expected where the eyewall of Beryl moves through portions of the Windward Islands,” the NHC added, indicating wind speeds in some locations could be 30 percent stronger than those listed in their advisory.

Beryl is likely to pass just south of Barbados early on Monday and then head into the Caribbean Sea as a major hurricane on a path towards Jamaica. It is expected to weaken by midweek but remain a hurricane as it heads towards Mexico.

Forecasters warned of a life-threatening storm surge in areas where Beryl will make landfall, with up to 6 inches (150mm) of rain for Barbados and nearby islands.

The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said in late May that it expects this year to be an “extraordinary” hurricane season, with up to seven storms of Category 3 or higher.

The agency cited warm Atlantic Ocean temperatures and conditions related to the weather phenomenon La Nina in the Pacific for the expected increase in storms.

Extreme weather events including hurricanes have become more frequent and devastating in recent years as a result of climate change.