Feds announce dental care expansion ahead of election
This week’s edition of who is saying what about public health care is compiled by Pat Van Horne.
Liberals declare dental care expansion day before election announced
“It’s not about cleaning teeth. It’s about preventative health care which is saving lives while also saving money for Canadians . . .On May 1, applications will open for Canadians aged 55 to 64. This will be followed by people ages 18 to 34 on May 15 and people ages 35 to 54 on May 29,” said Federal Health Minister Kamal Khera, the day before the federal election was called, Global News/The Canadian Press, March 22, 2025.
Full rollout of Pharmacare still uncertain
“Despite this historic passage of pharmacare legislation, its rollout remains uncertain. The government’s next steps are complicated by the Constitution Act of 1867, which gave provinces jurisdiction over health care. . .The federal government must now negotiate agreements with each province to implement the plan (three provinces and Yukon have signed on) — a task made more difficult because medication coverage varies widely across Canada. Without full co-operation, pharmacare’s impact could be limited, with coverage gaps persisting for millions of Canadians,” said four authors from the University of Calgary, in The Conversation, March 23, 2025.
Millions for staffed hospital beds, training in Manitoba budget
“The budget earmarks $47 million to add 97 fully-staffed beds to hospitals to reduce the strain on ERs and improve the flow of patients through the system. . .The breakdown is 60 beds in acute care, 10 in critical care and 27 in transitional care. Finance Minister Adrien Sala expects all of the beds to be in use this year. . .A $48.2-million plan to train more staff includes 176 new educational seats (16 for paramedics, 20 residency spots for doctors, 40 for lab and X-ray technicians and 100 for health-care aides) amid $770 million in new funding to recruit and retain front-line staff,” said a report by Chris Kitching analyzing the Manitoba government’s fiscal plan for 2025-26, in Winnipeg Free Press, March 20, 2025.
Didn’t see it coming: $8,000 cataract surgery
“(My parents) listen to the professionals. So if the doctor says something, they do it, they don’t question,” Collia said. “They don’t want to bother my brother and I to ask us questions all the time, but after the fact when I heard this, I said, ‘What’s going on?” said Filomena Collia, the daughter of a patient who was given an $8,000 bill by a private clinic for cataract surgery and left her with a sensitivity to light . . . We hear a lot of complaints about manipulative upselling, proliferating user charges and illegal extra-billing . . . The private clinics are owned by profit-seeking corporations and the evidence is that the corners cut to take profit out of our health system result in poorer quality,” said Natalie Mehra, executive director of the Ontario Health Coalition, The Toronto Star, March 13, 2025.
Health care needs a “rethink” says BC doc
“There needs to be a complete rethink of a health care system based around the notion that every person in the country can have regular access to a family doctor. . . In its place, there needs to be more focus on team-based care, where a doctor is supplemented by other care professionals such as nurse practitioners, and pharmacists,” said Dr. Tahmeena Ali, past president of B.C. Family Doctors, to Michelle Eliot, host of CBC News call-in BC Today, CBC News, March 21, 2025.
Saskatchewan Health Care Recruitment Agency (SHRA) issues retention toolkit
“Part of the SHRA’s mandate is to contribute to a positive experience for health practitioners, especially those new to our province or country, by working with all stakeholders on settlement and retention strategies, During our outreach to communities across Saskatchewan over the last year, we heard so many great examples of what they are doing to assist our health system with retention and we wanted to find a way to share those ideas with others,” said Terri Strunk, CEO, Saskatchewan Health Care Recruitment Agency (SHRA), in a news release, March 11, 2025.
Fixing the crisis requires political will
“At the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (RNAO), we are appalled by the report exposing the devastating impact of unsafe nurse-patient ratios. . . RNAO has repeatedly documented how nursing shortages and unsafe patient loads endanger both nurses and patients. It is horrifying to read that patients may have died due to these reckless policies. There is no mystery about the solutions; RNAO has outlined them time and again. . . The issue is political will. . . Will the Ontario government and health care organization take swift corrective action, or will they continue to put patients and nurses at risk? The people of Ontario deserve an answer,” said Dr. Doris Grinspun, CEO RNAO, in The Toronto Star, March 11, 2025.
Foreign nurses face major obstacles in regions of Quebec: lack of housing, child care, transportation
“A rigorous training schedule, culture shock and fear of failure caused severe stress among the recruits, says the report produced by the province’s Immigration Department. It suggests they were not properly informed about the demands of the program or the reality of life in Quebec,” said a document from the Quebec Immigration Department, as reported by The Canadian Press, March 25, 2025.
Alberta claims government not involved in contracting out health care, others call that false
“The government was very involved with the whole contracting-out process, and the health contracting secretariat was their vehicle to move that along . . .One of its main jobs was to manage and increase surgical contracting to for-profit surgical facilities. What kinds of services would they contract out? How would the process of review happen? What information would the reviewers see?” said Braden Manns, interim vice-president for provincial clinical excellence until he left Alberta Health Services in 2023, CBC News, March 18, 2025.
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