Hospitals are often stereotyped as providers of acute care services. In fact, acute care accounts for a relatively small portion of total hospital services. As noted a few days ago, costs per acute care patient (or, more exactly, per “weighted case”) in Ontario are significantly below the national average, coming
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The Canadian Progressive: Harper Conservatives failing BC’s First Nations children: PBO report
Reported by: Obert Madondo | Twitter: @Obiemad: First Nations demand a better deal from the Canadian Government during a massive December 2012 protest on Parliament Hill. (Photo: Obert Madondo) A report released by the Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) on Thursday says the Harper Conservatives are failing BC’s First Nation children and on-reserve schools.
Continue readingThe Canadian Progressive: CUPE: B.C. school support staff layoffs “devastating”
By: CUPE | Press Release NEW WESTMINSTER, BC – Education workers and students are paying the price for ballooning deficits in Coquitlam and New Westminster. The districts have announced layoffs of CUPE support staff that the union says will severely affect the quality and even safety of education and services. A $12.6-million
Continue readingDefending Public Healthcare: Doctors get lion’s share of Budget funding
Forget all the government Budget rhetoric about better home care. The real winners are the docs. The Ontario Budget Estimates are out and the line item primarily covering the doctors (“Ontario Health Insurance”) is going up 2.9 per cent to $13.3 billion. The rest of the health care sector got
Continue readingThe Canadian Progressive: Tories spend on Keystone XL ads, while cutting environment funding
Canadians should be outraged that the Harper Conservatives are spending millions of taxpayers money lobbying for the approval of the Keystone XL pipeline in the U.S. while cutting environmental funding. The post Tories spend on Keystone XL ads, while cutting environment funding appeared first on The Canadian Progressive.
Continue readingDefending Public Healthcare: Government: "collective bargaining is achieving results & protecting services"
Yesterday I noted that the Liberal Budget plainly states that they are planning many more years of austerity. So how does it see collective bargaining with public employees? And, moreover, public sector pensions? Collective Bargaining: The government claims that provincial public sector agreements are much lower than other sectors
Continue readingDefending Public Healthcare: Health care spending continues decline
Contrary to the hysteria from conservatives, health care spending continues to decline as a percentage of the provincial budget. Last year, health care accounted for 38.5% of total expenditures, this year the government plans to bring it down to 38.3%. This continues the trend downwards since 2003/4 when health care
Continue readingThe Canadian Progressive: The Humanitarian Coalition Launches Joint Appeal for Syrian Refugees
By: Humanitarian Coalition | Press Release: OTTAWA, May 14, 2013 – Today, the Humanitarian Coalition and its member agencies are launching a national joint appeal to raise funds to assist the 6.8 million Syrian civilians affected by the ongoing conflict in their country. Almost five million civilians have been forced to leave their
Continue readingThe Canadian Progressive: NDP demands action on missing $3.1 billion in anti-terrorism funding
By: Obert Madondo | The Canadian Progressive: Last week, the Auditor General reported that the Harper Conservatives can’t account for $3.1 billion of the $12.9 billion allocated to the Public Security and Anti-Terrorism Initiative [PSAT] for the period 2001 to 2010. The New Democrats are demanding action and accountability. Via a motion that was scheduled for
Continue readingDefending Public Healthcare: Ontario Finance Minister plans cuts in public services
The Ontario government just lopped another $2.1 billion off their 2012-13 deficit estimate, cutting it from $11.9 billion (as of January) to $9.8 billion. This means that since 2010 when they started their public sector austerity drive, they have now cut their deficit estimates by $18.1 billion. Deficit (in billions
Continue readingOPSEU Diablogue: A tangible response to physiotherapy cuts – the province finally adds community capacity
After significantly cutting outpatient physiotherapy at hospitals across Ontario, the government is finally putting something back. The Ministry of Health says it is making a major investment in community-based physiotherapy, exercise classes and falls prevention services that will benefit up … Continue reading →
Continue readingThe Canadian Progressive: Harper cut to Health Council of Canada could signal end of national health care
By: Canadian Health Coalition | Press Release: OTTAWA, April 17, 2013 – The Canadian Health Coalition issued an urgent alert to Canadians in light of today’s news that the Harper Government is terminating its funding of the Health Council of Canada. “This announcement signals Harper’s intention to withdraw essential federal leadership from
Continue readingDefending Public Healthcare: Hospital costs lower in Ontario
The “cost per weighted case” in Ontario hospitals in 2010-11 was $5,143, according to a new report from CIHI. (This indicator measures the relative cost-efficiency of a hospital’s ability to provide acute inpatient care.) The Ontario cost per weighted case compares with a Canada-wide average of $5,230.96. In other words, the Canada-wide
Continue readingDefending Public Healthcare: Homecare funding falls short – of even aging cost pressures?
The Ontario government likes to suggest that the planned annual 4% nominal increase in “home and community care” funding will offset their cuts to hospital services and squeeze on long term care beds. But it’s not totally clear that this funding will offset cost pressures on home and community care
Continue readingDefending Public Healthcare: Hospital cuts in 1.7% to 2.7% range
More hospital savings. Joanna Frketich reports Hamilton Health Sciences needs to find $20 million to $25 million in savings, while Hamilton St. Joseph’s is cutting $10 million to $12 million, and Burlington’s Joseph Brant must cut $4 million. In total, $34 to $41 million in cuts for Hamilton area hospitals.
Continue readingArt Threat: NSCAD students disrupt university board meeting to announce manifesto
Last week over 100 students from the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, concerned about how government funding cuts will impact the future of the university, disrupted a Board of Governors’ meeting to announce a political manifesto. The Manifesto for a Vibrant, Strong, and Independent NSCAD, which can be
Continue readingArt Threat: Brazil to give $25 monthly culture stipend to workers
While many governments are cutting funding to the arts and disingenuously downplaying the economic importance of culture, Brazil may be headed in the opposite direction. The South American country has announced that it planned to give workers a 50 real ($25) monthly stipend to be used on cultural expenses. Recipients
Continue readingArt Threat: Carrot loophole saves theatre from tax hike
Austerity measures in Spain have increased taxes on nearly everything. Tax on theatre tickets was bumped from 8 to 21 percent, and in an already challenging economy, theatre companies were naturally worried about whether higher costs would keep the public away. In the town of Bescanó, two hours north of
Continue readingDefending Public Healthcare: Mississauga-Halton gets bigger homecare increase
Another home care funding announcement came out today, this time for Mississauga-Halton.
Mississauga
The news this time was a little better, with a 4.1% funding increase for home care via $5.12 million for the Mississauga-Halton Community Care A…
Continue readingDefending Public Healthcare: Public sector health care funding shrinks – again
Private funding of health care is increasing faster than public funding. Now the Canadian Institute for Health Information reports that public funding is expected to fall to 69.7% of total funding in 2012. Public funding has been much higher — in 1976 it provided 77% of all health care
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