The Written Word: Rafe Mair Oct.14th

Saturday, October 14, 2006 03:49 AM

According to Vaughn Palmer of the Vancouver Sun, Premier Campbell’s three ring circus around the province listening to the public on healthcare is stillborn because the Federal Government says that the Canada Health Act will never be changed.

Although the Premier is not noted for taking my advice – he’d have won office 4 years earlier if he had – I advise him to pay no attention to the feds.

It’s true that Ottawa sends a lot of money by way of transfer payments and uses that as a lever to force provinces to follow federal health guidelines, which is to say the Canada Health Act, but the fact remains that Health is provincial jurisdiction.

When the feds paid 50% of the cost that was one thing – now they pay in the low teens and while still a big hunk of change, it would not be the end of the world if Alberta, Ontario or BC – or all three - decided to forego the federal contribution to do their own thing.

I’m not recommending that BC go it alone but that the Premier do his investigations and listening to the people without any regard for Ottawa. The eventual entrance of more private care into BC is inevitable if any sort of recognizable health system is going to continue. Victoria, Edmonton and Toronto k now that – so does Ottawa.

We have reached a point that politicians of the left in concert with Ottawa, won’t believe. It doesn’t seem to matter how strong the evidence is, they won’t believe it.It sort of reminds me of the story of the man caught in compromising circumstances by his wife, saying “Dear, do you believe me or your eyes?”

Premier Campbell, I suspect, knows that the day of reckoning is not far off and, unlike Ottawa, he would like to see what options will present themselves. To get public input while he is working this through simply makes a hell of a lot of sense.

On the rare occasions that our political masters do this we should be eternally thankful.

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Posted on Saturday, October 14, 2006 03:49 AM in Views by Rafe Mair

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Comments

Posted by: Gofaster on October 14 2006 7:39 AM

Between CAmpbell and Harper, I feel that this country isin pretty serious trouble, now and to come......
In my opinion they are a pair of sell outs....!

Posted by: kimbo on October 14 2006 10:30 AM

The eventual entrance of more private care..........

If thats where we are going we have a bigger problem then just funding. We are going the route that the US is on, health care will be for the rich only. Its been said before there is plenty of money for our health care but it needs better management other then allowing more private care.

When Campbell created all these wonderfull health care regions it was a blank check to encourage even more waste. He has washed his hands of health care and turned it over to empire builders. Its an old trick used by government to shift responsibility on someone else. It will allow the government to do all the surveys and hand wringing and say we have done our part now you do yours to the health regions.

Our health care is now virtually in private hands and they don't have to answere to anyone but themselves. So Rafe has the solution, more private care.

Cheers