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Montreal Gazette Sat May 30 2015

Montreal family physician Fahimy Saoud hated leaving her sick 5-year-old in someone else's care this week, but it was her turn to staffa walk-in clinic and she didn't want to let those patients down. But as the day wore on, Saoud kept hearing her daughter's plea when she left the house: "Who will take care of me?" So on Monday, after seeing everyone in the waiting room, Saoud left the clinic early; her daughter needed her as much as her patients did.

She went home thinking of her game plan as the provincial government prepares to pass Bill 20, the controversial carrot-and-stick health reform that Health Minister Gaétan Barrette would soften after alienating many of Quebec's doctors with the threat of clawing back 30 per cent of their salary if they failed meet a patient quota. Barrette announced this week that Bill 20's sanctions would not apply to family physicians for two years - taking the immediate sting out of the bill while keeping the onus on doctors to improve patient access. Which is small comfort to busy family doctors like Saoud.

Toronto Star Thu Aug 27 2015

Tom Mulcair has made the deficit fetish his own. The New Democratic Party leader has vowed that, no matter what happens, he will balance the federal budget if his party wins government. Even Conservative Leader Stephen Harper hasn't gone that far. He says governments may have to run deficits during recessions. Coming at a time of a wobbly world economy and falling oil prices, Mulcair's promise is almost certainly bad economics.

But for a party saddled with the (largely undeserved) reputation of wasting public money, it is probably good politics. The reason Mulcair's promise is bad economics is that deficits are sometimes necessary. In times of recession, for example, efforts to balance government budgets by raising taxes or cutting spending can make matters worse. The NDP understood this in late 2008 when, as part of an ill-fated coalition attempt, it said Ottawa should spend billions and endure at least four years of deficits in order to fight the worst economic slump since the 1930s.

July 10, 2015

Her union represents nurses and health-care workers who care for the elderly and they're telling her staffing levels are "disastrous and dangerous" in both long-term care and home care. As a result, Canada's seniors are not safe.

The CFNU is calling on federal and provincial governments to address seniors' care with a strategy called "Before It's Too Late: A National Plan for Safe Seniors' Care."

ST. JOHN'S - July 16, 2015

Premiers from all parties and all regions joined Canadian Doctors for Medicare today in writing a prescription for the Federal Government: a national drug plan for Canadians. The giant prescription was signed at an early morning event at the annual Premiers’ conference being held in St John’s Newfoundland today.

“It was exciting to see so many leaders add their voices to the advice so many people are giving the Federal Government,” said Dr. Ashley Miller, Newfoundland Director of Canadian Doctors for Medicare. “Just yesterday a new study showed 1 in 5 Canadian families can’t afford their medication. That’s why the latest poll shows 91% of Canadians want a national drug plan. Apparently their Premiers agree,” she added.

A study released this month shows that the rate of missed prescriptions for Canadians has reached 1 in 5. There are several factors involved in this, but one thing is perfectly clear: we need to correct this enormous gap in our health care system by pulling prescription drugs under the umbrella of public Medicare. We're not alone in this realization either. According to an Angus Reid poll, 91% of Canadians are now calling for a national pharmacare plan.

Significant public support for “pharmacare” over status quo, but concerns about costs remain.

A significant – and apparently increasing – number of Canadians are unable to afford the medications being prescribed to them, and they’re compensating by skipping doses, splitting pills, or simply not filling their prescriptions.

The Hamilton Spectator Tue Sep 1 2015

During my 30 years as a family physician practising in downtown Hamilton, many of my patients struggled with the cost of prescription drugs. I frequently found myself begging drug company representatives for "samples" to give to patients with inadequate or no drug coverage. Canadians spend more on prescription drugs than any of the 33 member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), except the United States. We're the only country with a universal health-care system that doesn't cover medications. In a recent Angus Reid Institute poll, one in four Canadians (23 per cent) reported that in the past year they or someone in their household did not take their medication as prescribed because of cost. The numbers are higher for younger adults, lower income Canadians and those with no or limited drug coverage. An overwhelming majority (88 per cent) agree that "Every Canadian - regardless of income - should have access to necessary prescription medication."

More than 100 health policy experts and health-care leaders from across the country have endorsed the Pharmacare 2020 campaign recommendations for a universal, single-payer, publicly accountable pharmacare program. And earlier this month, Hamilton's city council passed a motion calling on the provincial, territorial and federal governments to implement a universal pharmacare program. So what are we waiting for? The usual argument against universal pharmacare is that we can't afford it.

August 31, 2015

byBernie Sanders

All across the country, Americans are finding that the prices of the prescription drugs they need are soaring. Tragically, doctors tell us that many of their patients can no longer afford their medicine. As a result, some get sicker. Others die. A new Kaiser Health poll shows that most Americans think prescription drug costs in this country are unreasonable, and that drug companies put profits before people. Want to know something? They're right.

Vancouver Sun Thu Jul 30 2015

The Green Party didn't attract much attention Tuesday with its call for a national Pharmacare program. Pity. Because, despite the conventional view that Canada can't afford to subsidize medications for all its citizens, growing evidence suggests it may be the other way round - that we can't afford not to. The first hint is that everybody else - well, almost everybody - does it. Among the 33 developed countries that make up the OECD, only the U.S. provides a lower percentage of its citizens with a public drug plan. And only Mexico is close to Canada's second-worst, 50-per-cent level. Every other country covers at least 80 per cent, and two-thirds cover 100 per cent. If small economies like Slovenia and Portugal - not to mention big ones like the U.K. and Germany - find this worthwhile and affordable, maybe Canada would too.

Secondly, past studies have found that 10 per cent of Canadians can't afford to take their medications as prescribed, and a new survey suggests the number may be higher still, especially in B.C. An Angus Reid Institute poll released this month found 19 per cent of British Columbians get no help from private or public insurance plans to pay for prescriptions, and nearly half are stuck with at least half the cost. As well, 29 per cent - six percentage points higher than the national average, and 10 points higher than in Quebec, which has the most comprehensive provincial Pharmacare program - have at least one family member who didn't fill a prescription, or skipped doses, or cut pills in half to save money.

September 1, 2015

During my 30 years as a family physician practicing in downtown Hamilton, many of my patients struggled with the cost of prescription drugs. I frequently found myself begging drug company representatives for "samples" to give to patients with inadequate or no drug coverage.

Canadians spend more on prescription drugs than any of the 33 member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), except the United States. We're the only country with a universal health-care system that doesn't cover medications. In a recent Angus Reid Institute poll, one in four Canadians (23%) reported that in the last year they or someone in their household did not take their medication as prescribed because of cost. The numbers are higher for younger adults, lower income Canadians and those with no or limited drug coverage. An overwhelming majority (88%) agree that "Every Canadian — regardless of income — should have access to necessary prescription medication".

Toronto Star Wed Sep 16 2015

Tom Mulcair is tiptoeing carefully into the health-care minefield. The New Democratic Party leader is downplaying his pledge to reverse Conservative cutbacks that would cost the health-care system $36 billion over 10 years. He is emphasizing instead an array of useful but relatively cheap promises that focus on specific areas - from long-term care to physician shortages. Most are cribbed from former NDP leader Jack Layton's 2011 election platform.

All have political appeal in that they are targeted at identifiable groups, such as seniors. But given the fact that health care in Canada is delivered by the provinces, many would not be easily implemented. Mulcair's promise to increase the supply of physicians, for instance, may not resonate with provincial governments that, in the end, have to pay doctors' wages. Ontario, for one, insists that it faces an oversupply of physicians. As a result, it has cut back the number of hospital residencies.

The Globe and Mail Wed Sep 16 2015

apicard@globeandmail.com While health care is consistently identified as the No. 1 concern of Canadians in opinion polls, the issue rarely arises on the campaign trail. Debates among the leaders - and questions from reporters on the campaign trail - will be dominated by talk of the economy, foreign policy, defence and the environment, but health care will barely merit more than a few jingoistic platitudes. This seeming paradox, which has been the norm for decades, is easy enough to explain. "I never had a conversation about health care that didn't lose me votes," Joey Smallwood, the legendary premier of Newfoundland and wily politician, is purported to have said. In other words, talking about health care tends to be a loselose for politicians. Why is that?

First, Canadians love medicare. Despite the fact that it is a public insurance program - and not a particularly well-designed or well-managed one - the public romanticizes and mythologizes medicare to the point where ridiculous statements such as "medicare is what defines us as Canadians" get bandied about, and Tommy Douglas is elevated to deity. Any politician worth her or his salt knows better than to challenge idolatry. What that means, practically speaking, is that there is no political incentive to challenge the status quo - on the contrary, it's best to perpetuate it. So, when politicians do talk about health care, they don't promise change, they promise more money. Another key reason that there is little debate about health care is that there are few fundamental differences in the policies of the major parties, especially on paper.

SEPTEMBER 13, 2015

As new numbers show Corporate Canada's pile of dead money hovering close to $700 billion, a poll shows near universal support for calls to reverse Stephen Harper's costly corporate tax breaks.

Toronto Star Tue Oct 6 2015

Over the last 10 years, our federal government invested more in the aging population while cutting their taxes. You might think my 71-year-old mother thinks this is good. She doesn't. She knows it means the government paid too little attention to the growing economic and environmental risks facing her kids and grandchildren.

This is true, despite one of Stephen Harper's favourite talking points - middle incomes increased on his watch. Out of context, this fact obscures the bigger picture. Compared to a generation ago, twice as many young Canadians now give up years in the labour market to pursue post-secondary schooling to compete for jobs. After spending more time and money in education, young adults struggle to land stable, full-time work with benefits. For those who do, full-time earnings have not kept pace with housing prices.

Health care is a major issue concerning voters. Yet with the federal election just a few months away, it has barely been addressed.

Wed Jun 17 2015

When pollsters ask Canadians to name the issue that concerns them the most, health care routinely tops the list. It regularly outpaces jobs and the economy. It always trumps terrorism. It leaves issues like the Senate scandal in the dust. Canadians approve heartily of medicare. An Ipsos-Reid poll released this week calculated that 75 per cent think Canada’s health system is the best in the world — a fairly typical finding.

SITUATION CRITICAL: CANADIANS GIVE HEALTHCARE SYSTEM A FAILING GRADE Raising Canada’s healthcare system back to world-class status provokes major discussion at National Health Leadership Conference in Charlottetown, PEI, June 15-16, 2015

The Kirkland Lake Northern News Wed Apr 8 2015

Q When is a tax in Canada not for health care? Almost never. When do governments resort to special health taxes? When they're running for budget cover. Why do we put up with it?

Because governments know they can get away with cowardly cash grabs dressed up for health care, even if they bear no resemblance to health care's true costs and may not even be used to help pay for it. Better to shake down taxpayers in the name of the one program sacrosanct to them, than to outright raise regular taxes or do the dirty work of cutting spending. Ontarians should know this better than most -- they were hit with a massive tax increase, the largest in their history, when the Liberals brought in a personal health tax of up to $900 in 2004 when they were trying to climb out of a budget hole inherited from the previous Tory government. Dalton McGuinty, premier at the time, had only months earlier vowed during an election not to increase taxes. A decade on, with McGuinty long gone, Liberal-ruled Ontario is still in hock up to its eyeballs, with no prospect of whipping its books into shape until at least two years from now. Now, with the collapse in oil prices that have greased its treasury, Alberta is hitting up taxpayers with a special health tax of up to $1,000 on those with taxable incomes above $50,000 a year. Ironically, just four years after Ontario imposed its health tax, then-buoyant Alberta -- oil was trading at $118 a barrel, more than double today's price -- waved a magic wand and made health insurance charges go away. Neither province calls its health charge a tax, of course. That would be too honest.

Polls show Canadians favour investment and innovation in public system

March 14, 2014

Dr. Brian Day’s legal case is about more than patient access to private surgery centres. Dr. Day claims the basic principle at the heart of Canadian medicare — namely, that health care be provided according to a patient’s need, not their ability to pay — is unconstitutional.

Respondents split on choice between private and public care

Jun 03, 2014

The Ontario Health Coalition is not impressed with any of the province's political parties when it comes to health care. "We reviewed the party platforms and I have to say, I’ve been doing this for 14 years and the platforms this year were the most perfunctory and shallow I’ve ever seen," the coalition's executive director, Natalie Mehra, said Tuesday. "There isn’t a lot of details in the platforms."

Hamilton Spectator Fri Dec 12 2014

"Try to think of a word more hated than "taxes"! Right! Let's lay our cards on the table and say we are talking taxes. Politicians promise lower taxes and, therefore, more disposable income if we vote for them. They turn "taxes" into a hated word. The promise of lowering them is like luring a bear to a honey pot because many of the electorate believe they will be better off financially. This is a myth. One has only to note all the "extras" for which you would fork out on a daily basis - that is, if you are fortunate enough to have the income. It's been said "taxes are what one pays for a civilized society."

And we are civilized, aren't we? Taxes pay for all the services we expect to receive in a first-world country: health care, social workers, schools, libraries, bridges, roads, clean drinking water and sanitation, parks, food and building inspectors - and more. If these necessities are not being delivered it's likely taxes are being misappropriated or are insufficient - or maybe both. It's clear we have allowed ourselves to be bamboozled by politicians who promise that if we vote for whoever is electioneering, we shall have halcyon shopping days using the extra money that otherwise would have been lifted from us in taxes. The word "bamboozled" is used advisedly. Take our hospitals. In the 21st century, in Canada, are these institutions meeting the needs of all Canadians, no matter the income? The answer is no. This is not to say that there are not many patients who feel they have received good care. But we are talking about "all Canadians" and not only those who have spun the wheel and been lucky. There are so many horror stories in the media concerning mistakes made and neglect of patients that you feel sorry for conscientious staff from all hospital departments who may feel their efforts are not appreciated. These employees go to work each day and do their best, despite being overworked and stressed.