Healthcare is the greatest budgetary expense. Recent events have shown how vulnerable the system is to demand fluctuations on it.
Not only have physicians been upset that there is no more money in the public purse, the government is fiscally unable to spend more toward their billing fees. Patients are limited to treatment options as doctors threaten to leave.
Physicians should be allowed to accept/ take on more responsibility of supplying care to patients on a private fee for service that each feels will allow their practices to remain solvent and grow in scope (hybrid system).
Patients will have a choice to choose public or private service. If Healthcare insurance is available and legal, patients can divert themselves from public waitlist to the benefit of all patients.
People using Private Tier System (allowing Private Hospital facilities similar to the Non-Hospital Surgical Facilities already existing) would effectively pay a user tax (fee for service) shifting some burden from the public tax revenue to private payments. This would also help to keep Medical Tourism dollars in Alberta.
This could help the economy recover more efficiently by creating choices, for both physicians and patients, in time and public costs to the Public Health System. The economic benefit to government and the society is a health budget that will not grow excessively for Public Provincial Healthcare that in itself delays accessibility.
UCP Popularity Sinks To A New Low
If you listen to some recent polls, (video by Ken Chapman of ReBoot Alberta) it’s easy to see there is a lot of citizens who aren’t happy with new policies that weren’t in the UCP election campaign. The text above is policy 11 of the 2020 UCP AGM Policy And Governance Resolutions. You can read all the new policies below:
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Open in new tab Patients are limited to treatment options as doctors threaten to leave. That much is true, but it’s the UCP government driving them out of the province from all the government cutbacks and demands.
Kim Siever said the AMA announced that 400 clinics in Alberta are laying off support staff or considering closing. He’s keeping a list of the closures. Alberta Minister of Health Tyler Shandro said he would just recruit some more, but the terms being offered to healthcare professionals isn’t favourable.
A lot of people are fleeing the province. Others, who received CERB payments from the federal government don’t want to go back to their jobs that only pays half as much, with a constant threat of catching the coronavirus.
It seems Alberta will have to learn that if you treat people poorly, they won’t want to stick around and work for you.
I’ve heard Mr. Siever keeps this list updated, so you might want to bookmark it.