Stephen Harper Begins his Assault on Healthcare

[tay]

We are extremely disappointed with Prime Minister Stephen Harper's decision to end support for the Health Council of Canada....Everyone in this country should be deeply concerned because the federal government is distancing itself from the health and health care of Canadians.

Or take it from my friends at Canadian Doctors for Medicare.




“The federal government is no longer walking away from health care, it’s sprinting at full speed,” said Dr. Ryan Meili, vice-chair of Canadian Doctors for Medicare. “Cutting funding to the Health Council means cutting information on sustainability, quality and efficiency of our health care system – information that Canadians should be able to expect from their government.”



Killing the Health Council bad for Canada’s health care system, say docs | Media Releases



Because their impulses are noble. And they love our precious healthcare system, and want to make it even better.

I've explained many times why Stephen Harper hates medicare. Because it embodies the softer, more caring values of the Canada he despises so much.

By reducing transfers, just as the boomers start flooding into our hospitals. By forcing the provinces to pay more for services like retraining workers. By making them pay to house more prisoners. By throwing more and more unemployed Canadians off E.I. and on to provincial welfare rolls.

Sooner or later, the provinces, especially the poorer ones, will be forced to cry uncle. And the private health care vultures will move in. Just like they have in Britain, where the Cameron Cons are gutting the National Health System.

And forcing public hospitals to reserve 49 percent of their beds for private patients.


For let me be absolutely clear if we don't stop Harper and his gang of inhuman monsters, if we don't listen to the doctors and the nurses, if we allow the Cons to blind us, and condemn us to walk in the darkness.

As I've said so many times before.

We or our loved ones WILL end up in a horrible place.

In a country we don't recognize...

more

Montreal Simon: Stephen Harper Begins his Assault on Medicare

 

[Cliffy]

He didn't just begin and he did not start the assault. The federal government has been dismantling our health care system for decades. The system is inefficient and poorly managed and is open to abuse. It needs a major overhaul but with corruption in both government bureaucracies and the medical establishment, that seems unlikely. Big Pharma wants it privatized and they pretty much own the government in partnership with big oil and gas. And neither of them give a crap if you live or die a long, drawn out, painful death.

 

[JLM]

We are extremely disappointed with Prime Minister Stephen Harper's decision to end support for the Health Council of Canada....Everyone in this country should be deeply concerned because the federal government is distancing itself from the health and health care of Canadians.

Or take it from my friends at Canadian Doctors for Medicare.




“The federal government is no longer walking away from health care, it’s sprinting at full speed,” said Dr. Ryan Meili, vice-chair of Canadian Doctors for Medicare. “Cutting funding to the Health Council means cutting information on sustainability, quality and efficiency of our health care system – information that Canadians should be able to expect from their government.”



Killing the Health Council bad for Canada’s health care system, say docs | Media Releases



Because their impulses are noble. And they love our precious healthcare system, and want to make it even better.

I've explained many times why Stephen Harper hates medicare. Because it embodies the softer, more caring values of the Canada he despises so much.

By reducing transfers, just as the boomers start flooding into our hospitals. By forcing the provinces to pay more for services like retraining workers. By making them pay to house more prisoners. By throwing more and more unemployed Canadians off E.I. and on to provincial welfare rolls.

Sooner or later, the provinces, especially the poorer ones, will be forced to cry uncle. And the private health care vultures will move in. Just like they have in Britain, where the Cameron Cons are gutting the National Health System.

And forcing public hospitals to reserve 49 percent of their beds for private patients.


For let me be absolutely clear if we don't stop Harper and his gang of inhuman monsters, if we don't listen to the doctors and the nurses, if we allow the Cons to blind us, and condemn us to walk in the darkness.

As I've said so many times before.


We or our loved ones WILL end up in a horrible place.

In a country we don't recognize...

more

Montreal Simon: Stephen Harper Begins his Assault on Medicare

It might be something to do with a shortage of money methinks! -

 

[CDNBear]

It might be something to do with a shortage of money methinks! -

But we have enough to be throwing at Action Plan Canada?

 

[JLM]

He didn't just begin and he did not start the assault. The federal government has been dismantling our health care system for decades. The system is inefficient and poorly managed and is open to abuse. It needs a major overhaul but with corruption in both government bureaucracies and the medical establishment, that seems unlikely. Big Pharma wants it privatized and they pretty much own the government in partnership with big oil and gas. And neither of them give a crap if you live or die a long, drawn out, painful death.

I think there should be an upfront fee, say $10 to deter the patients with hang nails or dry mouth running to emergency.

But we have enough to be throwing at Action Plan Canada?

I wonder if APC isn't more to do with savings in the future- like maybe a little short term pain for long term gain? I don't really know bugger all about it, but that's one reason I can think of.

 

[Walter]

He didn't just begin and he did not start the assault. The federal government has been dismantling our health care system for decades. The system is inefficient and poorly managed and is open to abuse.

This part of your post is correct. The dismantling started when state run medicine began. The US took a big step to wrecking the world's best healthcare system when Bamstercare was passed into law.

 

[CDNBear]

I wonder if APC isn't more to do with savings in the future- like maybe a little short term pain for long term gain?

Investment in infrastructure is always good.

Anyways, I went looking for info on the Health Council of Canada, it's an NGO whose mandate is to, well, here, you check it out.

Seems to me that it's kind of redundant given the fact that the provinces pretty much do an equally poor job of doing the same thing.

Maybe it isn't such a bad idea after all.

 

[Retired_Can_Soldier]

The Canadian Healthcare system (I use the term very loosely) needs to be pulled from the hands of the Provinces and be centralized with a standard that is country wide. You want to know what's wrong with our system. Too many ivory towers and no standard practices.

 

[captain morgan]

You want to know what's wrong with our system. Too many ivory towers and no standard practices.

Damn straight... All the money that is funneled into healthcare and so little that actually makes it to the patient level

 

[CDNBear]

Dude! The oak desks and lavish lifestyles of the administrations must be maintained!

 

[Tonington]

The Canadian Healthcare system (I use the term very loosely) needs to be pulled from the hands of the Provinces and be centralized with a standard that is country wide. You want to know what's wrong with our system. Too many ivory towers and no standard practices.

I don't think the provinces would mind that at all. It's the largest cost, and the fastest growing cost.

Though, I think the possibility of innovative delivery which could reduce costs is less likely if it's centralized with the federal government. That was sort of the point of the NGO that both branches of government created. How to find cost reduction, and share that information.

I've been a big fan all along of sharing best practices from other countries.

 

[CDNBear]

That was sort of the point of the NGO that both branches of government created. How to find cost reduction, and share that information.

How do you think they've done in that area?

 

[Tonington]

How do you think they've done in that area?

Well, here's a recent report from just March of this year, detailing a Saskatchewan program that has effectively reduced waiting times:
http://www.healthcouncilcanada.ca/tree/HCC_QI_Innovative_Practices_EN.pdf

From November 2007 to December 2012,
The number of patients waiting more than 18 months for surgery has dropped by 93%.
The number of patients waiting more than 12 months for surgery has dropped by 82%.
The number of patients waiting more than six months for surgery has dropped by 58%.
The number of patients waiting more than three months for surgery has dropped by 46%.
As of December 31, 2012, all three components of the surgical safety checklist were performed in 96% of audited surgeries throughout the province.​

That's very good news, and the Health Council of Canada next steps were to prepare a report on technology transfer. Considering wait time reductions have been a primary goal of Health Canada for the last decade or so, it seems to me that killing a program designed to take effective processes and ease the implementation across Canada is short-sighted.

 

[CDNBear]

Well, here's a recent report from just March of this year, detailing a Saskatchewan program that has effectively reduced waiting times:
http://www.healthcouncilcanada.ca/tree/HCC_QI_Innovative_Practices_EN.pdf

From November 2007 to December 2012,
The number of patients waiting more than 18 months for surgery has dropped by 93%.
The number of patients waiting more than 12 months for surgery has dropped by 82%.
The number of patients waiting more than six months for surgery has dropped by 58%.
The number of patients waiting more than three months for surgery has dropped by 46%.
As of December 31, 2012, all three components of the surgical safety checklist were performed in 96% of audited surgeries throughout the province.​

That's very good news, and the Health Council of Canada next steps were to prepare a report on technology transfer. Considering wait time reductions have been a primary goal of Health Canada for the last decade or so, it seems to me that killing a program designed to take effective processes and ease the implementation across Canada is short-sighted.

Thanks, that's cool for Sask.

I really don't know how Ontario has faired statistically, but on the ground it doesn't feel so good.

 

[captain morgan]

Well, here's a recent report from just March of this year, detailing a Saskatchewan program that has effectively reduced waiting times:
http://www.healthcouncilcanada.ca/tree/HCC_QI_Innovative_Practices_EN.pdf

My question is if the Health Council of Canada was directly responsible for these changes.

The various provincial gvts look towards greater efficiencies all the time (or at least they are supposed to), but the program still has to fit within the existing framework that exists.

My interpretation of this report is more along the lines that the HCC made select recommendations and threw it at the province of Sask to delineate and institute... That in itself is not a bad thing, but it's a far cry from generating the blue print for a selective change that can be implemented on the spot

 

[Tonington]

My question is if the Health Council of Canada was directly responsible for these changes.

That's not really the function of the Health Council of Canada. No, they didn't send a directive to Saskatchewan to do this. But all provincial governments have been receiving Health Transfers aimed at reducing wait times. The function of the Health Council is to report on progress versus targets, and facilitate transfer of best practices.

It's very odd that the government would pull the funding for this, when their own stated goals are to do exactly what has been happening thus far.

As you said, there's a problem with how much money the provincial governments spend on actual delivery. It makes far more sense for them to spend money on delivery of healthcare, and have something like the Health Council who are not charged with delivering healthcare to report progress made in areas like quality of care and efficiency of health care dollars.

If all of the provinces spent money on doing that, well that's not at all efficient. Really we don't have one health care system in Canada, we have many healthcare systems. So I can't see how it makes sense to remove the funding for this program at all. It's baffling, especially in the absence of reports on key performance indicators or costs versus benefits for the program.

 

[captain morgan]

That's not really the function of the Health Council of Canada. No, they didn't send a directive to Saskatchewan to do this. But all provincial governments have been receiving Health Transfers aimed at reducing wait times. The function of the Health Council is to report on progress versus targets, and facilitate transfer of best practices.

It's very odd that the government would pull the funding for this, when their own stated goals are to do exactly what has been happening thus far.

As you said, there's a problem with how much money the provincial governments spend on actual delivery. It makes far more sense for them to spend money on delivery of healthcare, and have something like the Health Council who are not charged with delivering healthcare to report progress made in areas like quality of care and efficiency of health care dollars.

If all of the provinces spent money on doing that, well that's not at all efficient. Really we don't have one health care system in Canada, we have many healthcare systems. So I can't see how it makes sense to remove the funding for this program at all. It's baffling, especially in the absence of reports on key performance indicators or costs versus benefits for the program.

In light of all that is said, has the gvt determined that the HCC is not delivering value for the funding they have requested?

 

[Dixie Cup]

Dude! The oak desks and lavish lifestyles of the administrations must be maintained!

Don't get me started ..... oh hell.... As I continue to wait for my hip replacement....

In Alberta, we have 80 Vice Presidents no less - 80!!!! Why? Why do we need so many VP's? Supposidly, combining all the "Health Care Regions" into one major region was supposed to save money - not!!! Just meant that more people could be appointed as VP's with 1/2 million dollar salaries with humongeous expense claims!! And, they could go to the US and be reimbursed for health care there - I can't - I checked!! Didn't matter that I can't get my surgery in a "timely fashion" - the fact is I can get it here - even if it takes a "few years".
That doesn't apply to the the head-honchos at AHC though, as has recently been brought to the public attention.

And there's more where that came from too! Lavish spending on expenses that would NEVER pass the private sector accounting practices. I have done accounting in multiple companies, big and small and you had to account for the expenses, not only with receipts but for the reason for the expense to begin with (pre-approved) - Apparently not a requirement of Alberta Health Care!! I'm more than p'd at the whole thing and heads should roll - but likely won't!

Who voted for these morons! Not me. Can't anyone see that after 40 years we needed a change because of this reason alone?? What else and who else has benefited by having the same party in power for so long?? This is likely the tip of the iceberg - I'd bet money on it!

Really p'd off!

Well, here's a recent report from just March of this year, detailing a Saskatchewan program that has effectively reduced waiting times:
http://www.healthcouncilcanada.ca/tree/HCC_QI_Innovative_Practices_EN.pdf

From November 2007 to December 2012,
The number of patients waiting more than 18 months for surgery has dropped by 93%.
The number of patients waiting more than 12 months for surgery has dropped by 82%.
The number of patients waiting more than six months for surgery has dropped by 58%.
The number of patients waiting more than three months for surgery has dropped by 46%.
As of December 31, 2012, all three components of the surgical safety checklist were performed in 96% of audited surgeries throughout the province.
​

That's very good news, and the Health Council of Canada next steps were to prepare a report on technology transfer. Considering wait time reductions have been a primary goal of Health Canada for the last decade or so, it seems to me that killing a program designed to take effective processes and ease the implementation across Canada is short-sighted.

Alberta's status are 1/2 of those above and the big-wigs STILL get their bonuses - for failing to achieve their objectives! It's really quite unbelievable when you get down to it.

Sask. should be proud - maybe I'll move there lol

JMO

 

[B00Mer]

Why can't Canada keep the health care system they have, but adopt one US idea that might stop abuse??

Copayment or copay - every time you visit a doctor you pay a $20 copay, Urgent Care $50 and Emergency $100.

If that doesn't stop abuse, I don't know what will.. the copays can go back into our medical system and improve on it..

If you're on welfare, you can get some sorta a voucher or special card from the province if you need medical attention.

The system is not broken, it's just over used by people who really don't need to be going to emergency for a hang nail..

...

 

[JLM]

Why can't Canada keep the health care system they have, but adopt one US idea that might stop abuse??

Copayment or copay - every time you visit a doctor you pay a $20 copay, Urgent Care $50 and Emergency $100.

If that doesn't stop abuse, I don't know what will.. the copays can go back into our medical system and improve on it..

If you're on welfare, you can get some sorta a voucher or special card from the province if you need medical attention.

The system is not broken, it's just over used by people who really don't need to be going to emergency for a hang nail..

...

I've been proposing that same notion for years, but the dunderheads won't buy it, seems they think the extra paper work is more than worth while. They don't need paper work, just a big jar with a slot in the lid to drop the money in and nobody gets past the jar until they pay. The fact they get past the jar is as good as a receipt. -