• grte@lemmy.ca
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    1 year ago

    These moves to privatize healthcare need to be resisted in whatever ways they can be. Obviously that provincial government would never so it’s fortunate Health Canada is able to step in.

    I wonder if Alberta will try to use their Sovereignty Act to protect the clinic. That will make for some interesting times.

    • m-p{3}@lemmy.ca
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      1 year ago

      I could see the federal govt cutting the fees charged from the federal healthcare budget transfer.

    • Slabic@lemmy.ca
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      1 year ago

      There’s been privatized healthcare in Alberta for quite a while already. There’s also privatized insurance and somewhere around the 70-75% mark of health care services are ran by private firms although they abide by provincial and federal guidelines and regulations. While I don’t support privatized healthcare my confidence in socialized healthcare has been shaken the last few years. In the last 5 years there have been 7 people in my little circle of people I know personally who have went to other countries for care because they couldn’t afford to wait the 6 months to 2 year wait.

      Most recently my father. Was in dire need of a hip replacement, a month maybe 2 from being in a wheelchair which would leave him unable to work as he runs a business in the oil patch in Saskatchewan. With an estimated 9 months left, we as a family decided he’s going to Mexico. We got the money together and he had a new hip 6 days later. 6 days. Yes, it costed $30,000US(45,000US for private in canada and estimated 75,000 in the states) for the hip surgery and a 2 week all inclusive for recovery before flying back home. But it was done in less than a week. Canada is ranked last place out of all the socialized healthcare countries for wait times.

      Friend took his kid to the Stollery here in Edmonton a couple months ago with a broken arm, 12 hours before a doctor looked at him. I just don’t know anymore. While I don’t agree with anything this new cunt of a premier says, private existed long before her.

      Oh, an important edit. The 45000$US estimate for Canada was a private clinic in Montreal, so it’s not just Alberta. Just wanted to clarify that since people generally love shitting on Alberta for… Anything.

      • OminousOrange@lemmy.ca
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        1 year ago

        Do you think it’s purposeful that your confidence in socialized healthcare is shaken? Both the AB and SK governments have been chronically under funding healthcare, seemingly with the goal of dismantling the system, or at least having public confidence in the system shaken enough to give them reason to implement a privatized system.

        The solution is definitely complicated, but our governments seem to be completely avoiding even looking like they’re seeking solutions at this point.

        • Dearche@lemmy.ca
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          1 year ago

          In Ontario, they’re defunding public healthcare and redirecting those funds to subsidize private hospitals. I don’t think there’s any greater evidence of providing a solution to a problem that you created.

      • Magrath@lemmy.ca
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        1 year ago

        You say socialized healthcare can be done good or bad yet you seem to paint it with a bad brush like it’s inherently a bad system.

        It’s really how you manage it and in Canada it’s been poorly managed and lots would argue that’s been done on purpose so they can use it as an excuse for privatization.

        So don’t lose faith in the system because no matter how bad it is, you’ll be in far worse position if it was privatized and ended up like it is with our neighbors to our south because they’ll eventually have their way if we let them.

        • Slabic@lemmy.ca
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          1 year ago

          I don’t disagree. It’s why I don’t support private even if I did put money into it with dad’s situation out of desperation. I support socialized because it makes the most sense from top to bottom and I hope it can be fixed.

      • zephyreks@lemmy.ca
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        1 year ago

        Turns out defunding healthcare leads to poor quality of care… who would have thought?

        • whoisearth@lemmy.ca
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          1 year ago

          Nitpick but healthcare is in some respects still funded adequately. The problem is we throw so much money (and always increasing) into administrative bullshit and not doctors and nurses.

  • Mitchsicle@lemmy.ca
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    1 year ago

    Close to 10 years ago I ran into a subscription clinic in Calgary. At the time they said the funds went to pay for paramedical services rather than physician services. I wonder if that’s technically permissible.

    At any rate, I can’t afford private healthcare so I didn’t go with them.