January 22, 2002
Kamloops Daily News



When Canada's premiers meet in Vancouver on Thursday and
Friday of this week, Don Mazankowski's recent report on the
reform of Alberta's health is sure to be on the agenda.

You might remember Mazankowski from the Conservative
Mulroney government when it was tossed out in 1993.  
Mazankowski left politics to join numerous corporate boards,
including Gulf Canada.

In the Alberta context, the report's recommendations are
expected - -  including an expanded role for private health
care delivery.  What is not in this report speaks volumes.

Mazankowski proposes an "expert panel" to study health care
services to decide what should be covered and what should
not.  Not a bad idea on the surface, since most would agree
that our health care can no longer afford to be everything
to everyone.

What he doesn't say is who should sit on that panel.  It
matters.  An expert panel made up of businessmen, like
Mazankowski, would come up with a different list of services
to be delisted than a panel made up of doctors.  I would
trust health care professionals but not corporate leaders to
make that difficult choice.

Mazankowski has been accused of a conflict of interest,
since he is a member of the board of Great-West Lifeco Inc.,
which owns an insurance company.  But, you see, it's only a
conflict of interest if you consider the general public as
being the beneficiaries of a public health care system.  If
you consider that businessmen, like Mazankowski, are to be
the beneficiaries of health care then there is no conflict
of interest at all.

Another recommendation of the report is blending private and
public health care in one system, to encourage more "choice,
competition and accountability."  But Mazankowski doesn't
suggest just how such a blended system would work. 

And when I hear "choice, competition and accountability" as
desirable qualities in any public service, I know the
speaker means "privatization, inefficiency, and corporate
profits."

An efficient, effective health care system is what we
already have.  "Universal, publically funded, provides
better health care as measured by any outcomes - - lower
infant mortality, greater life expectancy, for example,"
says Anil Naidoo of the Council of Canadians. "The cost of
Canada's health care is one-half that of the U.S. and all
are covered," he continued.

In the U.S., 15 per cent have no coverage at all.  Health
care consumers, otherwise known as patients, primarily want
treatment that's available when they need it.  They want
effective health care that's delivered in a timely fashion
at a reasonable cost.

We don't have health care delivered in a timely fashion. 
You don't have to look further than the federal government
for the reason why.  Health care has been damaged through
underfunding.   But it can be mended.

What Mazankowski's report doesn't say is that as soon as the
door to health care if opened to privatization, it's subject
to Chapter 11 of the North American Free Trade Agreement. 
That would allow the U.S. to purchase our health care
services and make it more profits driven.

As a member of the Mulroney government that wrote NAFTA,
Mazankowski knows this well.  His failure to mention this
opening to U.S. competition is a deceptive omission.

The Mazankowski report is a convenient diversion for
Campbell's B.C. Liberal government.  While the spotlight is
on Alberta, Campbell is quietly encouraging the diversion of
public health resources for private use.  For example, CT
machines at Vancouver's St. Paul's Hospital are being run
after hours for anyone who can afford $1,000.

Why aren't publicly funded hospital diagnostic machines
being run 24 hours a day to reduce the backlog of patients
waiting for their use?

"It's a monopoly system basically. There's no competition,"
complains Jim Neilson about public health care.  Neilson is
the former B.C. Health Minister for the Socred government.  
Translation: not enough money is flowing into my privately
owned MRI clinic in Richmond.  With Campbell's government
filled with ex-Socreds, I'm sure that Neilson's words ring
true in many right wing heads.

Premier Campbell has made it clear that he is prepared to
cut deeply and hastily into public service.  Look for him to
be nodding in agreement at the Mazankowski report and
filling in his own solutions where it is silent.

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