LETHBRIDGE — A new report commissioned by Friends of Medicare from the Parkland Institute and authored by Salimah Valiani titled, “Public Funds for Private Profit: The Evolution of Health Care Privatization in Alberta” was released publicly today, outlining the systematic privatization efforts of Alberta’s health care system by successive provincial governments since the 1990s.

EDMONTON — This past Friday, the Deputy Minister of Jobs, Economy, Trade and Immigration released a statement informing Albertans that the interim report of Judge Wyant’s third-party investigation into Alberta’s health care procurement and contracting processes has been delayed until September 24, and that we will not see the final report until October. The interim report was previously due on May 30, with the final report to be delivered on June 30.

EDMONTON — Earlier today, the Alberta government announced a new acute care funding model, which involves switching to activity-based funding for surgeries, rather than using global hospital budgeting, essentially moving to a voucher model. This is a concerning shift that will impact Alberta hospital’s budgets.

EDMONTON — Today, after two weeks of waiting for answers into very serious allegations of government interference in Alberta’s health care contracting procurement process, Premier Danielle Smith and Health Minister Adriana LaGrange finally held a press conference to announce nothing new. There was no information provided as to the timeline or lead for the promised independent third-party review, and the Premier continued to double down on their failed approach to surgical wait times.

An article posted by the Globe and Mail last night alleges that Athana Mentzelopoulos, the former CEO of Alberta Health Services, was "dismissed two days before she was scheduled to meet with the province’s Auditor-General to discuss her investigation into procurement contracts and deals for private surgical facilities, according to a letter obtained by The Globe and Mail”.

The article goes on to allege that the former CEO believes that "she was fired because she launched 'an internal investigation and forensic audit' into AHS’s contracts and procurement processes."

The full board of AHS was dismissed by the government shortly after.

EDMONTON — SMG Medical Complex is a proposal to build a massive, 14-storey, private, for-profit health care facility in Fort McMurray. This contentious project has doubled in size from its initial proposal, and now promises to provide numerous services including chartered surgeries, ambulatory care, and “luxurious accommodations." They have launched a website seeking investors where they promise eight to 10 percent returns on investments, plus further opportunities for profits from “those willing to pay out of pocket.”

EDMONTON — In recent weeks, Albertans have heard repeated, troubling news about the state of surgeries in our hospitals, first about 90 orthopedic surgeries out the Royal Alexandra Hospital were postponed, followed by the news that orthopedic surgeries at the facility have now been halted until August 11. The Alberta Medical Association (AMA) has also been raising the alarm over the frequency of general surgery diversions as a result of these ongoing staffing shortages, which have since expanded to include trauma care diversions. 

EDMONTON — A new report released by the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) shows that the UCP’s privatization of Alberta’s surgical services have failed to deliver on promises to reduce wait times. This follows a previous report from the Parkland Institute, which showed that the Alberta Surgical Initiative has actually made things worse.

Friends of Medicare's statement on today's Supreme Court decision

EDMONTON – This morning, public health advocates across the country were heartened to learn that the Supreme Court of Canada has dismissed Dr. Brian Day and Cambie Surgeries Corporation’s attempt to overturn previous decisions made by BC’s courts, a conclusive decision to uphold Canadians’ rights to public health care based on need, not the ability to pay.

Expanding the use of for-profit surgical centres in Calgary is making health care short staffing worse while failing to solve the surgical backlog

EDMONTON — This morning, Minister of Health Jason Copping announced an expanded use of private, for-profit surgical centres in Calgary. Friends of Medicare and others have already spoken out at length about the problems with the government’s Alberta Surgical Initiative and their unfounded claims that privatization will improve surgical wait times.