Healthcare system faces challenges, but not in crisis, says Aglukkaq
There may be some challenges facing the Canadian healthcare system, but it’s not in crisis, says federal Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq. “It is a dynamic entity, and as with any healthcare system, faces evolving demands and public needs,” Ms. Aglukkaq (Nunavut) told The Hill Times in an email interview for this week’s health policy briefing. […]
The grey tsunami: not!
“Will the ‘grey tsunami’ drown all of our health and social services?” “Shouldn’t we just give up now and get on with the reality of private insurance and private delivery?” The Liberal Party of Canada says a resounding no to both questions. We believe it is time for the federal government to lead on the […]
Defending medicare in Canada should be a top priority
The provision of universal health care is a sign of respect that each person’s quality of life is important. Health care is a right, not to be abridged or abrogated and the federal government has a leadership role to play to prevent this. To allow barriers to health care to continue lessens the achievements we’ve […]
Quebec and feds have two irreconcilable visions on health care
Historically, Ottawa has intervened many times in the realm of health care. There is no shortage of examples of continual interference, encroachment and duplication by federal governments, both Liberal and Conservative. Under the provisions of the 1867 constitution, health and social services are the exclusive jurisdiction of Quebec and the provinces. Yet, since as far […]
Conservatives lack prescription for pharmacare, say health critics
Progress toward implementing a national pharmaceuticals strategy has stalled and critics say it’s because the federal government doesn’t have the will to act. Six years ago, federal, provincial and territorial leaders agreed that no Canadian should have to “suffer undue financial hardship” in order to access needed drugs. Health ministers began meeting to develop and […]
Wait times getting shorter, but critics say strategy too narrow
Three years ago, Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced that his newly-minted Conservative government would make due on an election promise to “tame the queue” of Canadians waiting for medical procedures. Lines for priority services are getting shorter in most provinces, but critics say the federal government’s current strategy of focusing the provinces and territories on […]
What’s next for federal health transfers? Billions set to dry up in 2014
Some players in the Canadian healthcare policy world are worried about what the federal government will do after billions of dollars of Canada Health Transfer money and tax points now flowing to the provinces and territories dry up in 2014. A 10-year First Ministers’ Accord signed in 2004 legislated a six per cent increase in […]
Poverty in Canada presents more than obvious symptoms
Poverty in Canada presents more than the obvious symptoms. Not only does it trap people in an endless cycle that is nearly impossible to break, it also has a significant impact on their health. To put it simply, poverty is making people sick, very sick. In fact, according to Statistics Canada, poverty reduces the life […]
Significant, even transformational, adjustments lie ahead on cutting GHGs
Climate change and Canada’s response to it have profound economic implications for our nation’s future. There are risks but there are also opportunities. We need to position ourselves to compete and prosper in an increasingly carbon-constrained global economy. Ensuring Canada is well-prepared to adapt and prosper as part of this new reality is the focus […]
Canada’s no clean-energy superpower
The mandate of the federal minister of the environment is found in the Department of the Environment Act. The minister is granted powers, duties, and functions for all federal matters related to, among other matters, the preservation and enhancement of the quality of the natural environment; renewable resources, including migratory birds and other non-domestic flora […]
