A small Italian village Belcastro, located in the southern region of Calabria — one of Italy’s poorest areas — has banned its residents from falling seriously ill, according to a report
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Belcastro, in southern Italy, is home to around 1,200 people. Image Courtesy: Facebook
A small Italian village Belcastro, located in the southern region of Calabria — one of Italy’s poorest areas — has banned its residents from falling seriously ill, according to a BBC report.
People living in Belcastro “are … ordered to avoid contracting any illness that may require emergency medical assistance,” BBC quoted a decree from local Mayor Antonio Torchia as saying.
Torchia said the decision was “obviously a humorous provocation,” yet it has proven to be more impactful than the urgent notifications he had sent to regional authorities regarding the deficiencies in the local healthcare system.
About half of Belcastro’s 1,200 residents are over 65, and the nearest Accident & Emergency (A&E) department is more than 45 km (28 miles) away, reported BBC, citing the mayor.
The mayor said that access to the A&E is limited to a road with a speed limit of 30 km/h (18 mph).
The village’s on-call doctor is available only sporadically and does not provide coverage on weekends, holidays, or after hours.
According to the report, Torchia expressed on Italian TV that it’s difficult to “feel safe” knowing that getting timely assistance means relying solely on reaching the A&E in time, adding that the roads themselves pose “more of a risk than any illness.”
The decree also instructs residents to “avoid harmful behaviors and domestic accidents,” refrain from leaving home frequently, limit travel and sports, and prioritise rest, added the report.
It, however, remains unclear how these rule