Leaders of the National Confederation of Municipal Health Workers (CONFUSAM), which organized the strike, said they were protesting the privatization of public health services through concessions and contracts with private companies.

The public health sector should be strengthened with an injection of more funds from the government to provide the population with better health care, said CONFUSAM president Carolina Espinoza.

Congress member Enrique Accorsi, of the opposition Party for Democracy, said that Chile has a healthcare system designed for young people who do not get sick.

The Chilean healthcare system is the only one in the world where hospitals are open for only half the day, and 80 percent of specialists belong to the private sector, Accorsi said.

Striking health workers will march from the Plaza de los Heroes de Santiago to the Health Ministry, along with university students who are fighting for public education.

(Prensa Latina)