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KLEIN TORIES PUSH CORPORATE HOSPITALS
Special to People's Voice
(This article is from the Feb. 1-14/2000 issue of People's Voice, Canada's leading communist newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited. Subscription rates in Canada: $25/year, or $12 low income rate; for U.S. readers - $25 US per year; other overseas readers - $25 US or $35 CDN per year. Send to: People's Voice, 706 Clark Drive, Vancouver, Canada, V5L 3J1.)
EDMONTON - In the middle of February the Conservative government of Alberta will introduce a Bill which, if passed, would profoundly weaken public health care throughout Canada. The Klein regime wants to throw open the doors to the corporate provision of hospital care, by allowing private for-profit hospitals, such as the HRG corporation in Calgary, to undertake complex surgeries and other procedures, and be paid from the public purse.
The media-smart Premier, a former television personality, says that the new arrangements will let cash-strapped Regional Health Authorities reduce waiting times by contracting out certain services (hip replacement operations are often mentioned) that the public sector is not effectively providing. The costs of the "bricks and mortar" for new facilities would supposedly be borne by the for-profit hospital corporations waiting in the wings.
Klein argues that the whole thing is a question of allowing more choices to shorten waiting lines. The cardinal principles of Medicare are not being violated, he says, claiming that the system will still remain under non-profit public administration, be reasonably comprehensive, and so on.
Alberta is the place where the door was just opened a crack to private health care by the Gimbel Eye Clinics in Calgary. The Canada Health Act forced the Alberta government to back down and pay for all basic cataract surgery and other eye operations carried out in these clinics.
However, as repeatedly pointed out by pro-Medicare critic Dr. Richard Plain, from the University of Alberta, the for-profit eye surgery centres make a lot of money with "add-ons" and extra facility fees. Medicare pays for the basics, but the shareholder eye surgeons convince their clients to go for the extras. One hundred percent of cataract surgery is already contracted out in Calgary, the centre of Klein support and location of the most muscular proponents of two-tier health care.
The door to American-style two-tier health care has been wedged open for some time by private clinics such as the Gimbel Eye Centres and private MRI clinics. Klein's forthcoming bill would blast the door off its hinges.
Organized opposition to the government is based mainly in the north of the province, around Edmonton. Only about one fifth of Alberta workers are unionized, and CUPE is carrying out its own campaign against the forthcoming bill.
The United Nurses of Alberta and the non-affiliated Health Sciences Association of Alberta have joined with the Alberta Federation of Labour and a number of community, seniors and religious organizations to oppose the government plan. The stalwart "Friends of Medicare" group has taken a leadership role. New Democrats and Liberal party representatives are also taking part.
A broad public relations campaign has been launched by this loose coalition. Union support has extended as far as hiring a student and youth organizer.
The coalition is sponsoring a province wide series of public meetings protesting privatization of the health care system. Kevin Taft, author of Shredding the Public Interest, a celebrated book on the Klein regime's fiscally unwarranted cutbacks, and Christine Burdett, spokesperson for Friends of Medicare, will be featured speakers.
A province wide householder leaflet, a website, advertising in the mass media, public meetings and a letter writing campaign are also in the works. Other ideas, such as a demonstration at the Legislature, and wearing armbands on the day the legislation is introduced, have been put on the back burner. Quite simply, the coalition does not want to risk a weak public showing of opposition.
An opinion poll carried out by the Friends of Medicare has not been especially encouraging. While the ethical and efficient arguments are on the side of Medicare, the notion of "choice" is firmly in Klein's court.
One bright spot is that the two-member New Democrat caucus has won the order paper lottery to present the first private member's bill this session. The NDs, who have taken a principled stand against the privatization of Medicare, will introduce a tough bill to phase out private clinics altogether.
It will require very strong public opposition or a decisive intervention by Ottawa to prevent the Klein Government from prevailing. Federal intervention seems unlikely. However, PV readers should act on the example of the proposed subsidy to NHL teams - if enough anger and solidarity occur, Klein will have to back off!
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