VICTORIA (the traditional and unceded territories of the lək̓ʷəŋən speaking peoples) - Canada’s premiers are meeting for the Council of the Federation today and tomorrow (July 11-12, 2022). A major feature of this meeting will be the call by provincial and territorial governments to increase federal funding for health care through the Canada Health Transfer (CHT) from 22% to 35%. 

In the summer of 2021, Alberta experienced a record-breaking heat dome, claiming an estimated 66 lives. That heat emergency finally passed one year ago today.

Hundreds of people in western Canada died from extreme heat during 2021’s heat dome. Seniors and unhoused communities were some of the most vulnerable and impacted. 619 people died in British Columbia, mostly seniors. In Alberta, there were an estimated 66 deaths, but no comprehensive data or analysis has been released.

One year later, Friends of Medicare has sent an open letter to Alberta Health Minister Jason Copping, calling on the Alberta government to take action to prepare for future extreme heat events.

This July 1 marks 60 years since Saskatchewan implemented universal Medicare for all, and 56 years since coverage was expanded to all of Canada.

On July 1, 1962, Saskatchewan became the first province in Canada to implement public Medicare for all, building the framework to ultimately expand across the country.

But this victory didn’t happen simply because politicians like Tommy Douglas or Woodrow Lloyd passed legislation; Medicare was a decades-long fight won by working people, the labour movement, community health care co-operatives, farmer organizations, and so on. It was a movement of regular people from all corners of the country, built from the ground up.

Earlier today, the NDP Opposition released FOIP documents showing that the UCP government is working on a plan to send Alberta patients and surgeons to private surgical centres in British Columbia. 

Today, Public Interest Alberta and Friends of Medicare are recognizing Alberta Seniors’ Week by calling on the UCP Government to bring back a Seniors’ Advocate.

“Alberta seniors deserve better than empty rhetoric from this government,” said Bradley Lafortune, Executive Director of Public Interest Alberta. “Seniors in this province are calling for real action on health care, affordable prescriptions, and income security.”

“That’s why we are calling on this government to bring back an independent seniors advocate as a first step to supporting seniors to live in dignity,” said Chris Gallaway, Executive Director of Friends of Medicare. “Instead, this government has ignored the calls of seniors across Alberta and continued their reckless agenda of cuts and privatization.”

Yesterday afternoon, the Alberta government announced they will be further privatizing home care services, releasing a request for expressions of interest and qualifications (RFEOIQ), set to close in July of this year. This plan will see Albertans with complex health and care needs being sent into the community, without providing details as to whether additional supports will be made available. 

Today the Alberta government reiterated their plans to privatize Alberta’s medical laboratory services, announcing that they have finalized their agreement with DynaLIFE to begin providing community lab services as of December 2022.

Government must stop ignoring drug poisoning crisis and support an evidence-based public health approach

Yesterday, the government of Canada approved the British Columbia government’s request to decriminalize small-scale personal possession of illicit drugs, starting next year. This policy change is one part of a wider public health and harm reduction approach to the ongoing drug poisoning crisis. In response, Premier Kenney put out a late evening, highly politically charged statement attacking the decision.

May 27, 2022
EDMONTON

Western Premiers’ call for more health funding must be targeted towards stronger public health care

Statement in response to today's Western Premiers’ Conference in Regina:

Today, the western Premiers met in Regina to further their demand for a 13% increase to federal health transfers. Friends of Medicare continues to call for strings to be attached to any new federal health funding.