One in five southern Italian households cannot afford to see medical specialists, says the Southern Italian Industrial Development Association, Svimez, in its 2010 Report on the Economy of the South. [In Italy, appointments with a GP or family doctor are free but all but the very poorest have to pay a nominal fee for hospital appointments with a specialist.]
As the recession hits southern Italy hard, the Association also reports that, in 2008, 30% of southern Italian households economised by not buying new clothing and 16.7% were unable to pay gas and electricity bills on time 21% said they could not afford to turn the heating on in winter and this figure rose to 27.5% in Sicily. 8% of households could not even buy food staples.
The report estimates that one in three southern Italians is at risk of extreme poverty because their wages are too low, as compared to one person in ten in northern Italy. 14% of families in the south are living on less than 1,000 euros per month and 47% of them are dependent on one wage only.
Again, this figure is higher in Sicily. In the south 100, 000 industrial employees lost their jobs in 2008 and 2009.
President Giorgio Napolitano said that radical changes in policy are necessary for the south.
