The mayor of Alcorcón, Candelaria Testa, announced this initiative at a press conference, highlighting Ernest Lluch's role as the driving force behind the General Health Law, a regulation that, according to Testa, "shaped the healthcare system as we know it" and established the pillars of universal public healthcare.
“"A public healthcare system that provides us with a network, sustenance, and security, and which was configured at that time to make it universal, so that everyone had access to public healthcare regardless of whether they contributed or not."
Ernest Lluch, who served as a deputy in the Cortes, Minister of Health and Consumer Affairs, and professor of History of Economic Doctrines, was assassinated by the terrorist group ETA on November 21, 2000. The proposed name change has the support of the commissioner for victims of terrorism and was the subject of a plenary agreement in 2023, during the term of the previous mayor, Natalia de Andrés.
The mayor has sent a letter to the Minister of Health, Fátima Matute, recalling the municipal commitment made three years ago. The objective is to "value not only the figure of this politician, but also the public healthcare system that we must care for and promote," in a context where, according to Testa, "the public system in Madrid is in full deterioration because a lot of funds are being diverted to the private sector."
