Most important election in history for health care: Holland
This week’s edition of who is saying what about public health care is compiled by Pat Van Horne.
Most important election in history for health care: Holland
“This is going to be the most important election in Canadian history… in terms of the future of health care,” said Minister of Health Mark Holland to the Toronto Star, January 13, 2025
“We are just hanging by our fingernails for pharmacare right now, and we need to get these deals through as soon as possible,” said Steven Staples, the National Director of Policy and Advocacy for the Canadian Health Coalition to the Toronto Star, January 13, 2025
“I want to see this get done,” says Holland on pharmacare
“Nothing is guaranteed. We’re in a volatile circumstance… I will be relentless in making sure that we finish.. I don’t think we need a lot of time to do it. We need a little bit more,” said federal Health Minister Mark Holland in CBC, January 14, 2025
Paid plasma clinics should not be allowed: NB Health Coalition
“We’ve seen it when governments give to private companies either a service or a delivery of a program… We’ve seen that there’s no oversight from government. They don’t follow up with what they intend the service or the program to be. And that’s what’s worrisome,” said Jean-Claude Basque of the New Brunswick Health Coalition to CBC, January 7, 2025 who CBC reported said, “the company behind the clinics is using the human body as a way of siphoning the plasma for profit. He said they often target desperate, vulnerable people living in poverty, pushing them to sell frequently, to make more money.”
Alberta’s ‘Covenant Care’ paying private staffing agencies nearly $110 an hour
“It’s a crisis that is the government and Alberta Health Services and Covenant Care’s own making. They seem to have an inability to recruit and retain qualified, skilled health professionals, and honestly, it’s something this province has been struggling with for years . . . (It is) an atrocity when you consider we’re the richest province in the country,” said Curtis Jackson, vice president of the Alberta Union of Public Employees, in Progress Report, January 6, 2025
Pilot program has physician assistants working at Vancouver Island hospital
“At the acute care end of things, when we’re over capacity at Saanich Peninsula Hospital, it really impacts the flow of our patients through the emergency department . . .So yes, we hope that this will improve [health-care] access, but it is a whole picture that we need to consider. . . It’s an integral part of increasing our human resource, and we will hope to see improvement in hours over time,” said Dr. Brendon Irvine, medical leader of emergency services, to CBC News, January 13, 2025
Non-profit cancer care groups filling too many cracks in healthcare, says foundation
“It’s time our health system approached cancer care differently. It’s time we move to a ‘values based’ health system where the budget established for the treatment of a disease is not determined by siloes (e.g., so much for drugs, so much for doctors, so much for hospitals). Instead, we should analyze the cost to ensure a good health outcome for a particular disease, and ensure no one goes out-of-pocket for essential care,” said Kathleen Barnard, president, and Louise Binder, health policy consultant, Save Your Skin Foundation, The Hill Times, January 14, 2025
Paramedic shortages not new, Conservative cuts to blame, says Manitoba health minister
“The shortages we’re facing today are a direct result of PC cuts and negligence . . .The Tories closed 23 rural emergency medical stations, cut millions from rural health authorities’ budgets, denied rural Manitobans access to advanced care paramedics and pushed 90 rural paramedics out the door. . .We’ve spent the last year turning the ship around,” said Manitoba Health Minister Uzoma Asagwara, to the Winnipeg Free Press, January 13, 2025
Stretcher occupancy in Montreal emergency rooms average 145 per cent
“We recognize that the (stretcher) occupancy rate is high even if there is an improvement . . . We still need to understand the reasons why people are coming to emergency rooms,” said Frédéric Abergel, executive vice-president of Operations and Transformation of Santé Québec, to Montreal Gazette, January 10, 2025
Minister ‘deeply concerned’ about patients being charged for public health care services
“There has been an expansion in scopes of practice for many regulated health-care professionals (e.g., nurse practitioners, pharmacists, midwives) to better utilize the full extent of their competencies, knowledge and skills to increase access to needed care. . . If you walk into a doctor’s office that is a physical doctor’s office or if you walk into a virtual doctor’s office, both of those things should be covered by the Canada Health Act . . .Both of those things should ensure that a patient isn’t paying for their health-care services,” said Federal Health Minister Mark Holland in a letter to provincial and territorial counterparts, CP24/The Canadian Press, January 10, 2025
Memorial student awarded for dedication to skin disease and health care
“In rural communities, especially here in Newfoundland and Labrador, access to health care is often limited. . .This initiative ensures all patients, no matter where they live, receive the care they need. . . Dr. (Frederick) Banting came from a small town, yet he made an enormous impact with his discovery of insulin. His story reminds me that no matter where you start, you can make a significant difference,” said Parsa Abdi, Canadian Medical Hall of Fame recipient, to the Memorial University Gazette, January 14, 2025
Support the Canadian Health Coalition
