Monday, July 11, 2005

Delay tactics and misinformation

Good news: the federal government is willing to take a strong stand on something. Namely, more time in which to dither:
The federal government has joined Quebec to ask for an 18-month stay in a Supreme Court of Canada judgment striking down a ban on private health insurance in the province...

A Justice Department brief filed Monday notes the complexity of the ruling and says Quebec should have time "to develop . . . the appropriate solution to the quasi-constitutional flaws in its health care plan."

Of course, the federal government is right to ask for more time. But shouldn't it also be taking some public steps to look for a solution in the meantime?

Another hilarious note from the article:
The Cambie brief, supported by seven other for-profit clinics, says there has been a 75 per cent increase in public-health spending over the past decade, and a 90 per cent increase in waiting periods.

The brief does not state a source for the alleged increase in waiting periods. Currently Canada does not have a national system for measuring waiting lists...

The brief says that lack of access to hospital operating rooms now forces 50 per cent of newly trained orthopedic surgeons to leave Canada each year, but again does not give a source for that statistic.

Sounds like a good summary of the privatization movement: absolutely certain that it's right, but with no actual evidence in support of its claims.

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