EDMONTON — Yesterday, Premier Danielle Smith’s government tabled new legislation that includes major new restrictions on access to gender-affirming health care. If passed, this legislation will infringe on the rights of transgender, non-binary, Two-Spirit and gender diverse Albertans to access the health care services they need, when they need them.
“Access to health care is a human right. Every Albertan deserves to feel safe and free of discrimination when accessing their health care, and the care they receive should come on the basis of the best medical evidence, not politics,” said Chris Gallaway, executive director of Friends of Medicare. "The legislation tabled yesterday is clearly discriminatory, and a political attack on gender-affirming health care, which is already sorely lacking in Alberta. Enacting these new barriers will only serve to put the health and safety of young people at further risk."
“This legislation will dictate what health care services Albertans can and cannot access. It is an appalling abuse of government power," continued Gallaway. "Health care decisions are between patients and their doctors. The Premier reaching in to set health policy like this sets a dangerous new precedent which should be of deep concern to all Albertans.”
The Premier’s announcement comes at a time when Albertans are increasingly worried about access to the health care they need, as a widespread short-staffing crisis continues to impact every single part of our health care system. Hundreds of thousands of people in our province still don’t have a family doctor, cancer treatments are being delayed, dozens of facilities across the province continue to face long wait times and repeated temporary closures, and over half of Alberta’s doctors are currently considering leaving our health care system.
In response to these challenges, Friends of Medicare have been urgently calling on the provincial government to get serious about workforce planning in health care. But we have seen no meaningful action to protect our health care system or improve access for patients. Instead, this government is focusing its limited time and resources on creating even more barriers to health care access for vulnerable Albertans.
“Alberta desperately needs a government laser-focused on a frontline workforce strategy to tackle the mounting health care staffing crisis," said Gallaway. "But instead, the Premier is more concerned about her own upcoming leadership review vote, spreading fear and blatant misinformation, and pandering to transphobia, hate and division in an attempt to distract from her government’s abysmal record on health care. It’s absolutely shameful."
"Such regressive and far-reaching political interference into the ability to provide patient care risks even more doctors and health care professionals deciding it’s time to leave the Alberta health care system, at a time when we most need to be retaining everyone that we can," concluded Gallaway.
Friends of Medicare encourages Albertans to speak out against these attacks by attending rallies this Saturday in Edmonton, Calgary, Lethbridge, in opposition to this transphobic legislation.
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