What Paul Martin said:
“Our purpose is to strengthen our universal public system and to provide timely access to medical services!”
What he really meant:
“We’re going to plug this loophole, and fast, because allowing affordable options for the rabble, er, ordinary Canadians seeking private health care could create waiting time problems for me with my private doctor!”
Oh, wel…come on now! Where ARE your CANADIAN VALUES!
(Two-Tier for me not for thee)
MPS CRY FOUL; PAUL MARTIN’S DOCTOR RUNS PRIVATE CLINICS
WebPosted Fri May 7 21:38:56 2004
Ottawa—Opposition politicians are calling Paul Martin a hypocrite after
finding out that his personal physician heads a private health care
clinic in Montreal.
Dr. Sheldon Elman is the founder and CEO of the Medisys Health Group. He
has been Martin’s doctor for 23 years.
Martin says he’s never used private health care. In recent months, he has
been touting the Liberals as the protectors of medicare while painting
the Conservatives as the party that wants to privatize services.
“The hypocrisy of these guys is absolutely breathtaking,” said
Conservative leader Stephen Harper.
The company’s web site, lists its 2003 revenue as $53 million and says it
provides health care to some of the country’s largest corporations. It
also operates a chain of private MRI clinics.
Martin insists he’s never undergone an MRI.
“My primary health coverage.is my medicare card and that’s what I use all
the time when I go to a public clinic,” says Martin. “I don’t believe in
queue-jumping.”
Deputy Prime Minister Anne McClellan took questions from reporters Friday
wondering why Martin would use a private clinic.
“This is a clinic in Montreal that is publicly accessible to anyone who
needs medical treatment.”
Only last week, Health Minister Pierre Pettigrew was forced by Martin to
clarify remarks Pettigrew made suggesting the Liberals were more open to
private clinics.
New Democrat MP Bill Blaikie says the issue is the fact that private
clinics are flourishing.
Quebec is home to a growing number of MRI clinics. Patients can opt to
pay out-of-pocket for the service, bypassing the long waiting lists of
hospitals.
Harper says Martin has failed to make clear his intentions on medicare.
“No one knows where this prime minister stands,” says Harper.
Martin has promised to work out a new health funding deal with the
provinces this summer. He is also expected to make health care an issue
in the next federal election, expected to be called any day.
Copyright (C) 2005 CBC. All rights reserved.
Martin’s next comments will be about this is just an unholy alliance between Stephen Harper and the Supremes to break up Canada.
Hey! Harper gets blamed for everything else. All Martin has to do is point and say UNHOLY ALLIANCE and the sheep in Eastern Canada believe him.
Why shouldn’t it work this time?
Remember the last election— ‘I Will Say No To Mr. Klein.’A good song title,perhaps,but,it seems to me the Supremes are suddenly singing backup in Ralph’s band!
Paul Martin’s Private Health Care Clinic in Quebec
http://www.medisys.ca/en/
Boasting over half of the Financial Post 500 are Medisys Clients.
Read the testimonials then the financial pages then the board of director and shareholders.
There’s big bucks to be made here.
For the last year, supporters of same sex marriage have said that “it is just a matter of acknowledging people’s constitutional right to equality”. Paul Martin has defended same sex marriage becuase he “believes in the charter of rights”. Who will dare to use exactly the same arguments in support of two tier medicine?
So now we have, in the last week, the potential
to have:
1) Healthcare not being universal, for which anyone in their 50s has been overtaxed for most of their entire working life; becoming 2 tier just as the libranos criticized the Tories fro proposing…even though they did NOT, and VERY expensive going forward. Not covered folks!
2) The Ontario librano branch making 65 UNcompulsary for retirement EVEN though it has NEVER been in the private sector anyway…paving the way for the next shoe to drop soon and that is extending the age at which retirees become eligible for CPP!!
So if your in your late 40s to late 50s..your healthcare will potentially COST you BIG TIME at the exact moment you need it most as you age and even though the Libranos have OVERcollected OUR taxes for decades.
AND>>>>>>
Your CPP won’t be available until you’re 68, 69 or 70..hell even 72 even though the Libranos have OVERcollected OUR taxes for decades.
I think of that Charlie Brown cartoon where Lucy is holding the football and says “Come ON Charlie Brown kick the football” and so he runs up and JUST when he is about to kick it …she pulls the ball away and he lands on his back in the mud…Over and over and over…just like the lazy dolts in Ontario who vote librano over and over and over.
Pathetic.
Does any blogger track the queue jumping by members of parliament . . be interesting data.
Also would be interesting to see the list of authorized queue jumpers by province. Criminal, cops, WCB claimants, foreign visitors etc etc.
Put to bed the myth of single tier i.e. Liberal double speak for “you peon level folks wait for years, our friends & insiders move right to the front of the line”
Suckers 🙂 🙂 🙂
And we make you fools pay for it !!! God its good to be a Liberal !!
There’s already a two-tier system: urban and rural. Rural folks pay the same taxes but usually have to leave homes/community to travel for care. System is so micromanaged, and the biggest joke are the so-called health authorities. They’re given massive budgets by the province (BC, in this case)to fund their area. Trouble is, they’re so top-heavy with bureaucrats, there’s little left for front-line workers. The Librano$ no longer have a weapon with which to terrify the public. With that no longer a part of their election platform, what’s left? GM’s plan to cut 25,000 jobs is the first shot across the bow of a downturn in the economy. Nice time for Paulie to go on a spending spree. Hope the Tories are paying attention and setting out their platform now that the Libs can no longer claim to be the saviours of the public system. This is actually great for everybody, including the economy. The unsung heros are those Canadians who cross the border for their care, yet continue to pay high taxes for services they can’t access.
Lower my taxes and let me subsidise my health care with a medical/dental rrsp or mutal fund.This country could be the leader in health care.