Saskatchewan’s health care system is being stealthily privatized, says SEIU-West’s Barbara Cape

This week’s edition of who is saying what about public health care is compiled by Pat Van Horne. 

Regina clinic charging a subscription fee violates the Canada Health Act principle of accessibility

“Not unlike Saskatchewan’s failed experiment in private MRIs and private surgeries; there is no evidence that the waitlists are being reduced, but private companies have definitely made a profit. This is a true violation of the rights of Canadian citizens to access quality health care,” wrote Barbara Cape, president of SEIU-West, in The Saskatoon Star Phoenix, in response to a recent CBC news report about a Regina health clinic offering a subscription service, September 4, 2024

Seven-year-old girl encouraged to pay for ‘faster’ health care

“It’s, I think, a slightly less-known and slightly more subtle sort of type of privatization that’s been creeping into the Canadian health-care system,” said Krystal Lewis, director of the Saskatchewan Health Coalition, following an email addressed to a seven-year-old Regina girl, encouraging patients to sign up for a patient plan through the health-care company Healtheon, to CBC News, August 28, 2024.

More on the opposition to the Regina clinic charging membership fees from the Saskatchewan Health Coalition here.

9,000 health care workers voting on deal in Nova Scotia

“The members will decide on whether this package proves to be enough, but the committee has certainly done its best and has a deal worthy of recommendation,” said Susan Gill, national representative for Unifor, to CTV News Atlantic, August 30, 2024

Alberta premier’s health care plan ‘massive vanity project’

 “The principal problem with the quality of Alberta Health Services (AHC) care has nothing to do with managers maliciously delivering bad service and everything to do with chronic underfunding of health care by the United Conservative Party (UCP), shortages of medical professionals resulting from past government decisions throughout Canada, and the (Danielle) Smith government’s massive vanity project to restructure health care along ideological lines,” wrote David Climenhaga in The Tyee, August 30, 2024

Critical incidents on the rise in Manitoba because of staffing issues

“We continue to see the upward trend and, frankly, it’s not surprising, with the huge net loss of staff that occurred within those years . . . It’s a really difficult thing to mitigate risk when you don’t have adequate numbers of professionals providing care,” said Jason Linklater, president of the Manitoba Association of Health Care Professionals, representing 7,000 workers, including rural paramedics, lab and diagnostic technologists, to the Winnipeg Free Press, August 30, 2024

Analysis over 20 years says federal health spending more than provinces

“I understand the position of the provinces — huge demands on them — but we have been ensuring that we’re providing the dollars that are necessary and required to help them in their health systems . . .Now what we need to do is to begin to transform how our system functions. We need to move from a crisis-based system where we wait until people are really sick and then we deal with it, to being upstream and avoiding illness and being engaged in prevention,” said Federal Health Minister Mark Hollard, to Canadian Press, September 2, 2024

Tackling health care biases with art

“Everybody has biases, but it’s important to self-reflect on what those biases mean to us and how we came about them. Maybe there’s another world view we can take a look at,” said X’staam Hana’ax (Nicole Halbauer), H.E.A.L. Healthcare project manager, to NNSL Media, August 29, 2024

Quebecers least likely to have dental insurance, says survey

“These data provide a solid baseline before the roll-out of the Canadian Dental Care Plan, but they are just the starting point. The findings raise important questions: What type of oral health professional people consulted. Was it a dentist, dental hygienist, dental therapist or denturologist? And why did they seek care? These details are crucial for understanding the full picture,” said Paul Allison, professor in the Faculty of Dental Medicine and Oral Health Sciences, McGill University, McGill Newsroom, September 3, 2024