Archive for the ‘Health’ Category
How we can actually achieve national pharmacare – Hill Times Op-Ed
Sunday, September 17th, 2023
A national public single payer drug plan… implementation requires massive administrative changes and costs… there are two other models that would work. Social insurance has been used in Canada and in many countries that have broader, higher quality universal health systems, most at lower per capita costs. A second, more targeted approach is a portable health benefit plan which uses a similar mixed funding model to help workers with no health insurance.
Tags: Health, pharmaceutical
Posted in Health Policy Context | No Comments »
This is why you don’t have a family doctor
Monday, September 4th, 2023
The process of becoming a doctor in Canada is… entrusted to numerous ministries, universities, colleges, councils, professional organizations and accrediting agencies… In the absence of consolidated oversight for the final product, the sheer number of participants in the process makes it very difficult to achieve significant reform. We are, in fact, facing… an unwillingness to abandon previously successful practices.
Tags: Health, ideology, jurisdiction, standard of living
Posted in Health Delivery System | No Comments »
To fix Canada’s health care, a hard economic truth must be acknowledged
Tuesday, August 29th, 2023
… a) when public health care was first rolled out, there were limited complex interventions available; b) what could be done was relatively inexpensive; and c) given shorter lifespans, there was simply less time for a patient to require the higher-cost care commensurate with advanced age. In that context, funding health care out of general tax revenues has become increasingly hard – and will eventually be unsustainable.
Tags: budget, economy, Health, ideology, standard of living, tax
Posted in Health Debates | No Comments »
The answer is clear: we can’t afford privatized health care
Thursday, August 24th, 2023
… lots of other countries have a blended system. In fact, so does Canada. But when we look deeper, we see that we spend less on our public health system — and more out-of-pocket and privately than most of our peers. As a share of all health spending, Canada allocates 75 per cent as public investment. How does that compare? Canada is a standout Scrooge.
Tags: budget, featured, Health, ideology, privatization, standard of living
Posted in Health Debates | No Comments »
What would you rather have: Too many doctors, or too few?
Friday, August 18th, 2023
There’s more than just supply and demand… There is no perfect system. There is no getting around the need for incentives and management to discourage abuses and encourage good service… To save medicare, we must get the incentives right.
Tags: budget, Health, ideology, jurisdiction
Posted in Health Delivery System | No Comments »
What stands between you and your health information
Friday, August 18th, 2023
… individual providers are proprietary about their patient data. Confidentiality is crucial. Different providers have different guidelines for accessing records, to both other providers and to patients. Legal ramifications are top of mind and the risk of inappropriate access to patient records is a nightmare that providers do not want to face. Finally, there is the issue of funding…
Tags: budget, ideology, jurisdiction, rights
Posted in Health Policy Context | No Comments »
CHC chair calls for progress on pharmacare implementation
Thursday, August 17th, 2023
We are calling on the new minister to implement public universal pharmacare. Don’t be fooled by the blandishments and manipulations of the pharmaceutical industry, which obviously opposes public universal pharmacare… We also hope he won’t be too impressed by caucus colleagues who are trying to placate the ferocious and well-financed pharma lobby on the Hill.
Tags: Health, ideology, jurisdiction, participation, pharmaceutical, standard of living
Posted in Health Debates | No Comments »
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
Posted in Health Debates | No Comments »
Canada has in fact achieved universal drug insurance coverage
Saturday, August 12th, 2023
People in the lowest income deciles are eligible for public safety-net coverage at zero or very low costs. People in the highest income deciles are covered when prescription drug costs exceed 3 per cent to 7 per cent of family income, depending on the jurisdiction. Typically, private drug plans use deductibles and copayments and end up insuring about 80 per cent of prescription costs.
Tags: economy, Health, ideology, participation, pharmaceutical, privatization, standard of living
Posted in Health Debates | No Comments »
Canadians deserve better than fake Pharmacare
Wednesday, August 2nd, 2023
A single-payer system can use its bargaining power to negotiate better prices and reduce costs… A fill-the-gaps approach is a short-sighted Band-Aid on a system that is bleeding out. It may appear to have lower upfront costs by only covering those who are uninsured, but it is less efficient when factoring in the administrative costs of verifying eligibility… A single-payer approach to Pharmacare is fair for all.
Tags: economy, featured, Health, ideology, participation, pharmaceutical, standard of living
Posted in Health Policy Context | No Comments »
Recent Comments