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May 11, 2016

Concern over disaffected workers being swayed by radical rhetoric spurs an international call to action from labor groups

Concerned about the rise of right-wing extremism and how it has preyed on the fears of working people across the world, labor leaders from nearly a dozen countries met in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday to declare the need for a "global New Deal" to fight these forces. "Too many politicians in the U.S. and Europe are exploiting our differences and inciting hate and division," said Richard Trumka, president of AFL-CIO, which organized the day-long forum along with its non-union affiliate, Working America, and Friedrich Ebert Stiftung, a German political foundation associated with the Social Democratic Party.

By Christopher Majka | April 26, 2016

That things are not well should be evident to anyone of acumen. Retreating glaciers, melting ice caps, rising sea levels, ever more extreme weather, dying coral reefs, desertification, the disappearance of the Aral Sea, the destruction of rain forests, vanishing species, record levels of economic inequality, rising extremism and xenophobia, political corruption, proliferating tax havens, decaying infrastructure, daily beheadings, bombings, terrorism, waves of refugees sweeping across Europe -- or drowning enroute in the Aegean or Mediterranean. It's not hard to connect the dots.

The European Union (EU) and Canada are currently negotiating a new Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) (European Commission 2011). In early 2010, the negotiating text was leaked and posted to the Trade Justice Network website, raising a variety of red flags for European member states. The draft agreement, described as more far-reaching and ambitious than any of either party’s previous free trade agreements, has already raised concerns in Canada. These focus on the extension of government procurement commitments to include local services (Sinclair 2010), the potential addition of investment protections (Sinclair 2011), and how EU demands in the field of intellectual pr

Charles D. Mallory, Alexandra Constant, Anna Piercy, Jennifer Major 04/10/2011

Most provincial and territorial medicare programs fully or partly fund health services beyond the requirements of the CHA

Healthcare has changed dramatically since the CHA was passed in 1984. With technological innovation, medically necessary care is no longer provided solely in hospitals

only half of Canadians have coverage through employers,2 and only 60%–75% of Canadians have some form of private insurance

only 60%–75

only

The Economist Intelligence Unit recently lowered Canada’s growth projections for 2012 to 1.7 per cent, “to reflect the deteriorating external outlook.” The outlook includes a deepening recession in Europe that could drag down the United States, taking Canada with it.Growth of 1.7 per cent is not enough to lower unemployment or significantly increase government revenues, which is why the Tories will take an axe to every department in February, cutting them by 5 per cent or 10 per cent without exception.

The provinces can hardly expect Ottawa to boost transfers to them even as it slashes its own spending. They will have to fend for themselves.

The Prime Minister is no fan of equalization

surely the provinces can't be surprised that the feds won't keep putting money into health care at more than double the rate of inflation. Most are already taking the same kinds of responsible steps themselves

The federal contribution will be capped at the rate of increase in the gross domestic product. Economic growth is a reasonable proxy for the increase in federal tax revenues, but Flaherty will need to explain what happens if the country enters another recession. It's one thing to limit the rate of increase in health-care spending, quite another to cut the actual dollar amount.

Flaherty's plan to limit health funding increases is a bit of a blunt tool, but it does create a pressure on government to be responsible with our money.

In 1977 both sides agreed to an incredibly complex formula, the essence of which was that federal funding for health care would increase annually at the rate of the nominal increase in the gross domestic product averaged over the previous three years.

the rate of inflation, add the rate real of economic growth – which, combined, equals nominal GDP

John Wright is CEO of the Canadian Institute for Health Information

a briefing from the Public Services Internal Research Unit (PSIRU) on the problems that PPPs can cause

the PPP briefing shows that PPPs do not supplement public spending – they absorb it

Labour, environmental, Indigenous, women’s, academic, health sector and fair trade organizations from Europe, Canada and Quebec representing more than 65 million people are demanding that Canada and the EU stop negotiating an excessive and controversial investor rights chapter in the proposed Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA).

endorsed by more than 70 organizations

Jan. 31, 2012 - Ake Blomqvist, Colin Busby

Canada’s provinces could learn from the Dutch and UK models

So, no, Canadians don’t think their health care is free per se. But they do see access to health services as a right, one they have paid for collectively and can use as they see fit.This sense of entitlement may well be an impediment to reforming health care, to getting a smarter mix of private and public coverage of health services (as is done in most European countries, which tend to be cheaper and more cost-effective overall).

Universal health coverage provided, in part, through a state-funded insurance program is a good foundation

After more than two decades in the pharmaceutical business, mostly in international jobs with drug giant Eli Lilly, Thomas Wellner moved into the top spot at CML HealthCare Inc. in February. CML runs a network of medical labs in Ontario and imaging clinics that perform X-rays, ultrasounds and mammograms in three provinces.

recently retreated from an unsuccessful foray into the United States

health care is a very personal thing and people should have more choices as to how they allocate their own resources to it.

The Huffington Post Wed Jan 22 2014

Nights and weekends may be the worst time to have a heart attack, according to a new review.

The review, conducted by Mayo Clinic researchers

Prescription drug costs to rise due to EU deal   By Mike Blanchfield, The Canadian Press November 16, 2013

Canada's deficit in its prescription drug trade with Europe swelled to more than $25 billion over the last five years. And experts say that's one more sign that consumers will face higher drug prices once the recent Canada-EU free trade deal comes into effect.

The 'Hypervirulent' attack; C. difficile detectives tackle a global menace with roots in Canada Calgary Herald Fri Nov 15 2013

Two strains of antibiotic resistant C. difficile that emerged in North America caused the global epidemic, the sleuths report. One emerged in the northeast U.S. a decade ago; the second, which they call FQR2, surfaced in Quebec. And it was FQR2 - the Quebec bug - that took offglobally, becoming a scourge in the U.K., continental Europe and Australia, the team reports. "It was the biggie," says Lawley.