Revera sale is a sideshow in ongoing private health care fiasco

Sandra Azocar, Executive Director of Friends of Medicare, issued the following statement today regarding the sale of Revera Home Health to Extendicare's ParaMed Home Health Care:

"Transactions like this are a sideshow in the Alberta Government's fiasco of giving public health care dollars to private, for-profit corporations. With between 95 and 98 percent of ParaMed's revenues generated from government contracts it shows who the real winners and losers are - the winners are the shareholders of these corporations and the losers are the people of Alberta, who see their tax dollars going to corporate profits instead of paying for health care services. The amount of money going to corporate profits is unknown to Albertans because the government refuses to make that information public.

As we have seen in the past, when our single-resource-based economy takes a downturn, the conversation inevitably turns to the 'sustainability' of our health care system and the government begins to look for 'waste and inefficiencies.' Opponents of public health care like to claim that it is fiscally unsustainable and that the only solution is to open it up to the private sector.

The government rightly looks to eliminate waste in our health care system where it can be found, but it continues to ignore the biggest area of waste - public dollars going to corporate profits. The government should immediately begin phasing out private, for-profit health care and instead spend those tax dollars on providing front-line health services to Albertans."

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Background:

On January 15th, 2015 Extendicare announced a significant acquisition to expand its "Canadian Home Health Care Business" by acquiring the Revera Home Health business from Revera Inc. for a quick $83 million in cash, before working in capital adjustments. It is anticipated that the acquisition will initially generate revenue of approximately $189 million.

Revera Home Health is a private sector home health care provider in Canada, serving 31 communities across six provinces (Ontario, British Columbia, Alberta, Quebec, Manitoba, and Nova Scotia) and employing approximately 5,700 people. Revera, which has 15 care facilities in Alberta also provides home care services, long-term care, and 'retirement living' services.

Extendicare, through its ParaMed Home Health Care division, is currently the largest private-sector home health care provider in Ontario, with approximately 98 percent of its revenue generated from government contracts.