July 24, 2013

(NIAGARA-ON-THE-LAKE, ON) - Canadians are clear in their desire that Prime Minister Stephen Harper call a First Ministers meeting to discuss the future of health care. Many of them are also prepared to change their party support if the federal party they currently support fails to present a plan for the future of health care. This according to the results of a survey conducted on behalf of the Canadian Health Coalition by Nanos Research.

Friends of Medicare has learned that starting today, 72 Licenced Practical Nurses and Health Care Aides working at the University of Alberta Hospital will be receiving their layoff notices as part of AHS `workforce transformation' scheme. "In an already over-stretched system, this attempt to save money by moving staff around units and hospitals can only be seen as nonsensical," states Sandra Azocar, Executive Director of Friends of Medicare. "These front-line staff will be displaced and given the hope that they will find employment elsewhere in the system. This re-organization, transformation, whatever name one wants to give it, can only serve to cause havoc in our health care system," adds Azocar.

Friends of Medicare would like to extend our support to Home Care workers who delivered letters to Health Minister Horne and Premier Redford outlining their concerns around the changes being made to Home Care delivery in Alberta.

Last week, Friends of Medicare signed on to an open letter calling on Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq to consult with Canadians on the contentious issue of whether Health Canada should approve for-profit, paid-donation blood plasma clinics to operate. After the tainted blood scandals of the 1980s, and the recommendations to not accept paid donor blood and plasma that followed, we're concerned that the Minister is rushing to approve these clinics based on a business interest, not the best interests of Canadians. You can read the letter here to find out more about the potential risks to this change in policy and to see who else has signed on to the letter: http://www.canadiandoctorsformedicare.ca/an-open-letter-to-health-minister-leona-aglukkaq.html

With the firing of the AHS Board, "the question that Albertans should be asking is why the Premier and the Minister of Health do not read the employment contracts that are offered to Executives before hiring them?.  They are the ones that are ultimately responsible for the decisions that are being made regarding the use of our public health dollars," indicates Sandra Azocar, Executive Director of Friends of Medicare.

June 11, 2013
EDMONTON

In December 2012, Albertans receiving home care services saw their services cut by 15 minutes.  Friends of Medicare has now learned that as a result of the changes being made in home care, a further 10 minutes of services will be taken off direct patient care time.

Friends of Medicare is concerned about a full-page advertisement placed in the Edmonton Journal on May 8, 2013. The ad appears in a form meant to look like a news column on page A7.

On April 12, 2012, Premier Alison Redford promised Albertans that if re-elected, her government would ensure that all Albertans who suffer from type 1 diabetes would receive cost-free access to insulin pumps to help them better manage their condition and improve their quality of life. She has still not delivered.

(Ottawa) – The Canadian Health Coalition issued an urgent alert to Canadians in light of today’s news that the Harper Government is terminating its funding of the Health Council of Canada.