(August 28, 2017)<\/p>\n
By: M. McKinnon, Atikokan Progress\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n What’s a giant teddy bear got to do with health care? \u201cWe can’t ‘bear’ to lose Three coalition officials made Atikokan their first stop on a weekend tour of the North, August 11-14. \u201cWe have chapters in Kenora and Sioux Lookout, but this is the first time we’ve visited Atikokan,\u201d said Jules Tupker, chair of the Thunder Bay chapter of the coalition. \u201cOur number one priority is to protect public health care itself.\u201d Sara Gutierrez, the OHC office manager, was also along for the tour, which went from here to Fort Frances, Kenora, Dryden, Sioux Lookouit, Nipigon, Terrace Bay, and Marathon. It has also pressed government to fund hospitals at a level that will allow them to maintain services. After almost a decade of freezes and less-than-inflation-level increases, Ontario hospitals are h a r d – p r e s e d t o ma i n t a i n services. This year’s increase of two to three percent in base funding was a welcome change, but still less than the five percent most hospital officials and advocates felt was needed.<\/p>\n The coalition – which represents more than 400 member organizations including seniors’ groups; patients’ organizations; unions; nurses and health professionals’ organizations; physicians and physician groups that support the public health system; The coalition will push to make health care an issue in the next provincial election, which will likely be held in June. All of the candidates will be asked about their exact plans for handling health care. \u201cIf they don’t answer the (August 28, 2017) By: M. McKinnon, Atikokan Progress\u00a0 What’s a giant teddy bear got to do with health care? \u201cWe can’t ‘bear’ to lose medicare\u201d says the Ontario Health Coalition, which has for nearly a decade been fighting off any erosion to Canada’s free medical care system. Three coalition officials made Atikokan their first stop […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5589","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ohc-in-the-news"],"yoast_head":"\n
\nmedicare\u201d says the Ontario Health Coalition, which has for nearly a decade been fighting off any erosion to Canada’s free medical care system.<\/p>\n
\nExecutive director Natalie Mehra said the coalition is constantly working to expose the way private, for-profit interests are elbowing their way onto the
\nscene. \u201cCanada’s public health care\u00a0system is under threat by private,
\nprofits-seeking clinics that want to be able to bill OHIP for tests and surgeries and bill patients hundreds or even thousands of dollars as well,\u201d she said. \u201cUser fees for medically-needed hospital and physician care are
\nunlawful under the Canada Health Act. We are drawing attention to this, explaining to patients their rights, and pushing back against the takeover of non-profit and public hospitals by private for-profit corporations.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nIn British Columbia and Quebec, private clinics and user fees have become a major problem, and in BC private clinics have even launched a court challenge to laws that protect patients from user fees.\u00a0\u201cWe’re looking at what is almost a full two-tier system [one for those who can pay extra, the other tier for those who can’t afford to] in B.C. and Quebec,\u201d said Mehra.
\nIn Ontario, the coalition has had some major successes in preventing the closure of rural hospitals, and in making people aware of the growing role of
\nprivate firms for services like lab tests, cataract surgery, and MRI and CAT scans.<\/p>\n
\nnon-profit community agencies; student groups; ethnic and cultural
\norganizations; residents’ and family councils; retirees; poverty and equality-seeking groups; women’s organizations, and others will continue to press the case. \u201cHow do we enhance hospitals for public service, so they are
\nmore accountable and acceptable to the community?\u201d said Mehra. \u201cIf you have any ideas or suggestions, let us know what you think at our website.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nquestions, we will keep raising the issues,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"