
Martin won't modify health plan for NDP CBC \|\| November 9, 2005 Prime Minister Paul Martin said his government has no intention of revamping its health-care proposal, despite the NDP's rejection of the plan which could set the stage for an early election. "We sent out a very clear proposal to Mr. Layton," Martin said Tuesday. "That proposal is now government policy and we're proceeding with it. And if Jack Layton wants to join with us to protect health care he is more than welcome." When asked by a reporter if he's preparing for an election, Martin said he's not going to join the opposition and "play a lot of political games", saying instead he's focusing on governing. Article Posted at www.KnowledgeDrivenRevolution.com On Monday, Layton said the three-page proposal didn't go far enough, and said he might pull his party's support from the minority Liberal government as early as this month. "There's no basis for our party to express confidence in this government," Layton told a Toronto audience at lunchtime Monday. "There is no meaningful accountability or even a real effort to monitor and track public medicare's decline and private health care's rise." Layton said he wants the federal government to prevent provincial governments from using money from last year's health-care accord on private health care. Responding to Layton's challenge, federal Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh said the government will push forward with the health proposal anyway. Highlights of what Dosanjh calls the Canadian Public Health Care Protection Initiative: More research on the level of private health care in Canada. Requirements that any new money Ottawa gives the provinces be spent on the public health-care system. A vow to crack down on doctors who work in both the private and public sectors in a practice some call "double-dipping." Dosanjh said he was shocked to hear of a recent case in his home province of British Columbia in which a patient was told there was a year-long wait for a joint replacement in the public system. Dosanjh said, the surgeon told the patient that if he was prepared to "pay a certain amount of money privately and go to his clinic, he'd be able to deal with it. And I think that's absolutely unacceptable." As for Layton's complaint that the proposal doesn't go far enough, the health minister challenged the NDP leader to come up with an improvement. "I await his clear, detailed proposal, If he has one." Home	Weekly
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Martin won't modify health plan for NDP

CBC || November 9, 2005

Prime Minister Paul Martin said his government has no intention of revamping its health-care proposal, despite the NDP's rejection of the plan which could set the stage for an early election.

"We sent out a very clear proposal to Mr. Layton," Martin said Tuesday. "That proposal is now government policy and we're proceeding with it. And if Jack Layton wants to join with us to protect health care he is more than welcome."

When asked by a reporter if he's preparing for an election, Martin said he's not going to join the opposition and "play a lot of political games", saying instead he's focusing on governing.

Article Posted at www.KnowledgeDrivenRevolution.com

On Monday, Layton said the three-page proposal didn't go far enough, and said he might pull his party's support from the minority Liberal government as early as this month.

"There's no basis for our party to express confidence in this government," Layton told a Toronto audience at lunchtime Monday.

"There is no meaningful accountability or even a real effort to monitor and track public medicare's decline and private health care's rise."

Layton said he wants the federal government to prevent provincial governments from using money from last year's health-care accord on private health care.

Responding to Layton's challenge, federal Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh said the government will push forward with the health proposal anyway.

Highlights of what Dosanjh calls the Canadian Public Health Care Protection Initiative:

More research on the level of private health care in Canada.

Requirements that any new money Ottawa gives the provinces be spent on the public health-care system.

A vow to crack down on doctors who work in both the private and public sectors in a practice some call "double-dipping."

Dosanjh said he was shocked to hear of a recent case in his home province of British Columbia in which a patient was told there was a year-long wait for a joint replacement in the public system.

Dosanjh said, the surgeon told the patient that if he was prepared to "pay a certain amount of money privately and go to his clinic, he'd be able to deal with it. And I think that's absolutely unacceptable."

As for Layton's complaint that the proposal doesn't go far enough, the health minister challenged the NDP leader to come up with an improvement.

"I await his clear, detailed proposal, If he has one."

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Martin won't modify health plan for NDP

CBC || November 9, 2005

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