To view the pharmacare plan click
here. (pdf format)
During
their annual powwow, all of Canada’s premiers agreed
(that’s right, agreed) on a plan for a national
prescription drug insurance plan. All the provinces
(except Quebec) would cede some of their jealously guarded
healthcare turf and let the feds administer the nationwide
pharmacare program. But there’s a rather sizable
catch: Ottawa would have to foot the whole bill. So
far, the feds’ reaction has been cool. Based on
what the players are saying you can decide if Paul Martin’s
Liberals are looking a gift horse in the mouth or are
being justly wary of premiers bearing ‘gifts.’
Big wig What he's got to say about the pharmacare plan
Gordon Campbell BC Premier Soundbite: “It’s
something that I’ve been talking about with my
staff for some time.” Tidbit: Mr Campbell is responsible
for putting the national pharmacare issue on the table.
Ralph Klein AB Premier Soundbite: The pharmacare plan
"is a stroke of brilliance… For the first
time, we're giving the federal government the opportunity
to participate in the direct delivery of the healthcare
system… If they want to get in, this is an opportunity."
Lorne Calvert SK Premier Soundbite: After the premiers’
successful negotiations, Mr Calvert mused: "It's
not every day that the premier of Saskatchewan, the
premier of Alberta, on matters of healthcare are 100
per cent in agreement, but today we are." Gary
Doer MB Premier Soundbite: The pharmacare plan "is
not only visionary, it's also very sensible." Tidbit:
Mr Doer reportedly worked hardest to get the premiers’
deal done during the Council of the Federation. Dalton
McGuinty ON Premier Soundbite: Federal funded drug insurance
"would free up the provinces to devote themselves
more fully to reducing wait times. We are pulled in
all directions within healthcare itself and that would
give us the flexibility to attack wait times."
Danny Williams NF Premier Soundbite: The plan "is
a win-win for everybody and a huge win for Canadians."
Bernard Lord NB Premier Soundbite: "Maybe the best
way is to give it all to the federal government and
say, 'you take it. We'll help you deliver it, you take
it, you fund it, you set the criteria.'" Tidbit:
Mr Lord sees the plan as a way to forgo the traditional
federal/provincial skirmishing on healthcare. John Hamm
NS Premier Soundbite: “We would use [any healthcare
savings brought on by pharmacare] to achieve all the
objectives that we’ve set for ourselves in Your
Health Matters [the NS government's healthcare reinvestment
plan].” Tidbit: Dr Hamm is Canada’s only physician
premier. Paul Martin Prime Minister Soundbite: “I
think that’s where the focus has to lie.”
Tidbit: Mr Martin has been diverting questions about
the premiers’ plan to back his smaller scale ‘catastrophic
cost insurance’ pet project. Ujjal Dosanjh Federal
Health Minister Soundbite: At his speech during the
recent CMA annual meeting he said: “an effective
pharmacare initiative cannot stand alone or exist in
isolation from other elements of healthcare.” Tidbit:
Given his provincial NDP roots, one would think Mr Dosanjh
could be expected to support a national pharmacare plan.
Ralph Goodale Federal Finance Minister Soundbite: “It
would be very difficult to see how the premiers’
proposal could be accomplished within the known fiscal
framework… $12.5 billion per year is a prohibitive
amount for the federal treasury to be able to consider
at the present time.” Tidbit: Mr Goodale is the
most forceful public opponent of the pharmacare plan.
Jean Charest QC Premier Soundbite: "We expect to
be fully compensated for the program that we have."
Tidbit: Quebec already has a public pharmacare program
but Mr Charest anticipates extra money from Ottawa if
the premiers’ plan happens. Pat Binns PEI Premier
Soundbite: "We've been saying all along that healthcare
is very expensive and that Ottawa should be paying more.
If he (the PM) finds that covering 5% is very expensive
then he should understand covering the other 95%, that
it is an even bigger challenge.“ Tidbit: For Mr
Binns, pharmcare would make up just 1/20th of the total
cost of healthcare. Big wig What he's got to say about
the pharmacare plan BY PETER WOODFORD What the Feds
say...
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