CHC National Coordinator, Michael McBane, and CHC Spokesperson, Shirley Douglas, Provide Expert Testimony to the Romanow Royal Commission on Health Care
November 12, 2001
Commissioner Roy Romanow
Commission on the Future of Health Care in Canada
P.O. Box 160, Station Main
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, S7K 3K3
Dear Commissioner Romanow,
Please find attached a formal submission of the Canadian Health Coalition to the first phase of the work of your Commission on the Future of Health Care in Canada.
Forty-five organizations that represent millions of Canadians endorsed a joint statement entitled: Standing Together for Medicare: A Call to Care. The statement contains the principles and values that we believe should shape the future direction of health care in Canada. Health care is a public good in which the few must not profit at the expense of the many. Canadians will fight to ensure that their governments adhere to this principle.
The brief of the Canadian Health Coalition has identified values and policies in conflict with the principles of medicare, barriers to change, and economic interests that threaten the sustainability of the public health care system. To ensure public well being and the sustainability of medicare, the health policy objectives of governments must come before the commercial objectives of health industries. This priority applies to all aspects of government including: international trade; regulatory programmes including the safety of food, drugs and medical devices; health research; and health services including acute care, primary care, home care, long term care, and information technology. Specific evidence-based recommendations are included.
The future of health care in Canada rests on the ability of Canadians and their governments to protect medicare based on the principles of the Canada Health Act from the commercial values of the market. We look forward to working with you to fulfill your mandate and help preserve medicare as a public good for future generations.
Sincerely,
Michael McBane
National Coordinator
