Ministers must deliver on pharmacare and long-term care standards, says Unifor

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced members of his new Cabinet, and Unifor President Jerry Dias wants those ministers to engage actively and progressively in building a fairer, more just economy. Unifor is a member of the Canadian Health Coalition.

“As you consider the key priorities that will guide the work of incoming Cabinet ministries under Canada’s 44th parliament, I want to impress upon you the importance of delivering for working people who continue to battle their way through this pandemic,” said Dias in a letter to the Prime Minister recently.

Among the ten recommendations in the letter were important measures on health care.

“As ministerial mandate letters are drafted, I ask that you consider the following items to form part of the government’s priorities as Parliament reconvenes.

• “Immediately announce funding commitments for a national pharmacare program that is comprehensive public, universal, accessible and portable, as well as a national formulary.

• “Undertake to work in partnership with provinces and territories to establish minimum long-term care standards of daily care and a comprehensive strategy to improve working conditions,” urged Dias.

Unifor is also calling on Canada to provide urgent assistance to developing countries still struggling to obtain vaccines. Unifor wants Canada to support the proposed TRIPS waiver at the World Trade Organization. “Canada must help those in need, in every way possible, as an act of true global solidarity,” said Dias.

Mandate letters from the Prime Minister outline the policy objectives that each minister will work to accomplish, as well as the pressing challenges they will address in their role. The mandate letters for 2021 have not been released at publication time. They will be posted on the Prime Minister’s website: https://pm.gc.ca/en/mandate-letters

(Cover photo: Unifor)