Afghans face a loss of health care

06/29/2007

JALALABAD, Afghanistan (AP) -- This month, two Afghan medical workers drove off into the hazy blue mountains that rise above this dusty provincial capital. They have not been seen since.

No one knows who took them, but their disappearance has had far-reaching consequences. With security in doubt, other health-care workers have been ordered off the roads. Clinics are fast running out of medicine because supplies can't be delivered. Doctors are searching for safer places to work.

The problems here mirror a developing crisis across Afghanistan. Just as violence is heating up, with civilian casualties rapidly escalating, the health-care system is breaking down, according to Afghan and international medical experts.