Alberta wants to change the face of health care by offering a 'third way'. It would see patients paying for some surgeries and doctors working for both the public and private systems. The point of these reforms is simple - if you don't want to wait 2 years for your hip replacement surgery, pay now and get it in the next few weeks. Sounds pretty harmless on the surface. But what effect will it have on the system down the road? To save space on this page, read my comment and I'll tell you what my concerns are.
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Friday, March 03, 2006
Ralph has it all wrong.........
Alberta wants to change the face of health care by offering a 'third way'. It would see patients paying for some surgeries and doctors working for both the public and private systems. The point of these reforms is simple - if you don't want to wait 2 years for your hip replacement surgery, pay now and get it in the next few weeks. Sounds pretty harmless on the surface. But what effect will it have on the system down the road? To save space on this page, read my comment and I'll tell you what my concerns are.
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What I find alarming is that the government is trying to solve a problem by abandoning it. Why is there a waiting list for some surgeries? Because there aren't enough surgeons or facilities to meet demand. Why is that? It's because there isn't enough money being spent on facilities, doctors make less than in other locales (such as the US) and there aren't
enough doctors. So why does the government think that by allowing private clinics, you'll be able to get that surgery sooner? Because you will. A doctor is much more likely to treat you with private money because they can charge what the market will bear, not what the goverment will finance. Do you honestly believe that a doctor would continue to work in the public sector earning goverment-regulated fees for treatment when they could earn so much more in the private system?
Our health system is at a breaking point. Waiting lists are longer than ever. Finding a new family doctor is almost impossible. Getting doctors to stay put is harder than ever (because of salaries). Health insurance is covering less and less every year. Creating a private system fixes the problem by putting the burden of financing the health system with enough money to work on the public. Instead, government should take responsibility for financing the system to be able to meet everyone's needs - in the spirit of how our system was created. Health care for free - for everyone - no matter how much money you earn. Anything else equates to 'decent health care only if you can afford it'. And that's very un-Canadian.
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