Legislature Fall Session marks the Fall of Fighting Back for our Public Health Care

As MLAs return to work today, Albertans can expect to continue to see steps in pursuit of this government’s ongoing agenda to privatize our public health care.

Since the release of the UCP’s 2019 election platform, this government has remained steadfast in that goal. The release of the McKinnon report back in September 2019, followed by the AHS Performance Review in February, provided the ideological fodder, as both made recommendations for sweeping changes to our health care system through major privatization. The government has been quick to act on those recommendations, introducing legislative changes that have provided the legal framework for the privatization of our medical laboratories, in-hospital support services, and surgeries, among others, as well as the announcement that upwards of 11,000 people will be laid off from AHS. This past weekend at the UCP AGM, we saw members narrowly pass a policy which directs the party to pursue a ‘privately funded and privately managed health-care system’ in Alberta.