Five controversial lessons to cure health care from Jane Philpott
Wednesday, December 4th, 2024
Her goal in writing Health for All is to ensure “every person living in Canada has access to a primary care home, in the same way that every child has access to a public school.” But she acknowledges that it will require a transformation that challenges current thinking, practices and interests… 1. The federal government has a role in public health care, despite complaints from the provinces… 3. Phase out fee-for-service payments and put doctors on salary…
Tags: featured, Health, ideology, Indigenous, jurisdiction, mental Health, participation
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Senate holding up Pharmacare Act
Monday, September 16th, 2024
… the Health Minister’s and the House Leader’s offices told Canadian Health Coalition representatives they expected the Senate to pass the Pharmacare Act before the summer. The Minister said he had several provinces ready to enter into agreements soon thereafter… But the Senate had different ideas… Now there are indications the Senate SOCI committee is entertaining amendments to Bill C-64… pharmaceutical and insurance corporations have lobbied furiously to derail Bill C-64, or delay it as long as possible.
Tags: budget, Health, ideology, participation, pharmaceutical
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Budget officer estimates cost and savings of single-payer pharmacare
Thursday, October 19th, 2023
The PBO says, “Upon the implementation of a single-payer universal drug plan… we estimate the incremental cost to the public sector (that is, federal and provincial governments) combined to be $11.2 billion in 2024-25, increasing to $14.4 billion in 2027.” In terms of the economy as a whole, the PBO estimates cost savings on drug expenditures of $1.4 billion in 2024-25, rising to $2.2 billion in 2027-28.
Tags: budget, economy, Health, jurisdiction, mental Health, participation, pharmaceutical
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Liberals’ fortunes hinge on Holland’s pharmacare: coalition director
Thursday, September 14th, 2023
“Only a single-payer Pharmacare system will achieve the savings, efficiencies and fairness that is the hallmark of Canadian Medicare. Anything less will be unacceptable to Canadians and the NDP,” NDP health critic Don Davies declared in June, backing the view of Dr. Eric Hoskins. Public health care experts and organizations like the Canadian Health Coalition, and every commission that’s looked at the problem, agree.
Tags: Health, ideology, jurisdiction, pharmaceutical, standard of living
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Health Coalition wants $3.5 Billion in Budget for Pharmacare
Wednesday, August 16th, 2023
If accepted, the government would fulfill a key recommendation of the 2019 Final Report of the Advisory Council on the Implementation of National Pharmacare, led by Dr. Eric Hoskins, which estimated that it will cost an additional $3.5 billion to launch national pharmacare starting with universal coverage for essential medicines. Here are the coalition’s four recommendations…
Tags: featured, Health, jurisdiction, mental Health, participation, pharmaceutical, standard of living
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Pharmacare could save over $1600/year per patient and promote ‘pharmoequity’ finds study
Thursday, June 1st, 2023
Providing free medicine to patients reduces costs to the health care system and contributes to overall health equity, researchers learned… “I was surprised by the magnitude of the savings,” Dr. Nav Persaud… told CBC. “It seems like eliminating medication costs both saves money in avoided hospitalizations, avoided emergency room visits, makes people healthier and addresses health inequities — it makes access to health more fair.”
Tags: budget, disabilities, Health, mental Health, participation, pharmaceutical, standard of living
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Budget 2023 overlooks Canada’s “dirty little secret” about federal health funding
Wednesday, May 24th, 2023
It’s a “dirty little secret” that the health care money sent to the provinces and territories under the Canada Health Transfer does not actually have to be spent on health care… Speaking on behalf of the Canadian Health Coalition, I urged MPs to take action to rein in health care privatization by the provinces, and to ensure that the promised Canada Pharmacare Act is a public, universal program that covers everyone.
Tags: budget, Health, ideology, jurisdiction, mental Health, standard of living
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Eyes on Ontario after BC slams door on for-profit plasma collection
Wednesday, April 26th, 2023
Supporters of Canada’s safe, voluntary blood system are concerned that paying plasma donors, as Grifols does, could undermine essential voluntary blood donations and take advantage of economically disadvantaged people.
Tags: Health, ideology, jurisdiction, privatization
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There’s universal support for pharmacare, finds new poll
Thursday, April 20th, 2023
87% of Canadians support implementing a national pharmacare program to provide equal access to prescription drugs for everyone in Canada… 86% of people feel the federal government has a responsibility for ensuring everyone in Canada has prescription drug coverage… 79% of people support the federal government taking charge to fund a national pharmacare program.
Tags: Health, ideology, jurisdiction, mental Health, participation, pharmaceutical
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Landmark Dental Benefit Act passes House of Commons final vote – so, what’s next?
Wednesday, November 2nd, 2022
Bill C-31… the Dental Benefit Act is an interim step toward the much fuller and more comprehensive public dental program… the new public dental program will be a federal program without cooperation from the provinces and territories. The NDP agrees with the Liberals’ go-it-alone approach to avoid the new program becoming embroiled in federal-provincial wrangling over health care dollars…
Tags: budget, Health, jurisdiction, participation, poverty, standard of living, youth
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