Defend Public Healthcare

As reported here  a week and a half ago, the Erie St. Clair Local Health Integration Network (LHIN --  the guys charged with funding and restructuring Ontario health care) was planning to bring in Disney speakers for an hour or two at an upcoming LHIN conference.  Well (following a lot of public criticism), it now appears that even the LHIN finds this idea too goofy (or, perhaps, just a little mickey mouse).  So they've pulled the Disney speakers.  But the Erie St. Clair LHIN CEO, Gary Switzer, is not backing down graciously.  Here's his response to Tory leader,Tim Hudak, who had criticised the plan:  “Let’s be very clear — this guy is making this crap up and it’s false. I don’t think the public is stupid enough to believe him.” The Windsor Star notes that Switzer countered  Hudak, claiming the LHIN was not going to spend $10,900 for Disney speakers to lead the 90 minute chat, but rather only $9,500. (At this point I might note that I'd be more than willing to talk

Yesterday about 200 people joined a rally called by OCHU and CUPE Local 2875 at Queensway Carleton Hospital in Ottawa to protest bed cuts. Queensway Carleton employees were joined by hospital workers from Cornwall, Brockville, and other points in eastern Ontario. Local 1974 at Kingston General chartered a bus. A few workers even came from OCHU Area 4. And it was a very pleasant protest. Local 2875 President Ian Rayment called on local Liberal MPP Bob Chiarelli to come through and help the Local union stop the cuts. The chant of the day? I nominate: "Bob Chiarelli get off your butt and help us fight these hospital cuts".  Local 2875 met with him a few months ago, to little avail. But Chiarelli has just been elevated to cabinet -- so he should have more ability to deliver now. We will see. In the past, most hospital protests were in smaller cities, so this is something new. On September 2, a protest at Providence Healthcare (in Scarborough) brings the protests to Toronto.

The City of Port Colborne passed a motion Monday night to seek legal advice on legal actions it might take  regarding the shutdown of the local hospital's emergency room, the Tribune reports . "We have made the move to seek that legal advice and take the appropriate steps," said Mayor Vance Badawey.  Barbara Butters, a councillor for Ward 4 in Port Colbourne was even franker:  "Do whatever it takes to make sure these charges get laid because there's no way those SOBs should be getting away with this," Butters said as citizens cheered from the public gallery.  Municipalities are playing are bigger role defending local hospital services. Good on them!

Of the provincial deficit and Dwight Duncan, the provincial Finance Minister, the Toronto Star suggests that the “spectre of looming shortfalls … helps bolster Duncan’s case for a planned wage freeze for more than 1 million public servants, including nurses, teachers and bureaucrats.” Well, that argument is weakening. The Public Accounts for the province have now come out for 2009-10 and the deficit is a lot smaller than Finance Minister Dwight Duncan and the Liberal government forecast. In fact, another $2 billion was lopped off the provincial deficit. The Liberal government also reduced its deficit estimated by $3.4 billion the day before the March provincial budget. That makes the 2009-10 deficit $5.4 billion less than the Liberals had estimated it to be half way through the year. (When I see discrepancies this size, it does make me wonder if I've put too much faith in Finance Ministry forecasts.) In any case, the government will not get one-tenth of $5.4 billion t

Following the political storm over the fumbled restructuring of mental health hospital beds in Kitchener, London and Cambridge (reported here earlier), the Minister of Health and LTC, Deb Matthews, has found some cash for hospital beds in Kitchener.  But befitting our model of transparency, the Health Minister can't say how much money is promised, according to the London Free Press .  Murkier and murkier.  Hospital funding is getting less transparent  -- and more political.  It's the squeaky wheel that gets the grease. So my advice to local communities is -- squeak on. dallan@cupe.ca

Greece is likely the leading test case for public sector austerity, a policy which is beginning to sweep into other countries, and even our own Ontario, with its bed cuts and public sector wage freeze. So it's interesting to see that even the not so labour-friendly folk at the Wall Street Journal are beginning to express some misgivings.  Here's the lead from their recent story on Greece's growing economic woes: Greece's deepening recession is driving joblessness steadily higher, feeding discontent with the government's austerity program and dragging on the broader economy.   Greece's gross domestic product contracted by 3.5% in the second quarter from a year earlier, hitting retailers hard and sending unemployment rates to above 12% of the work force, according to data released last week.  Forecasts vary on how bad unemployment could get. The International Monetary Fund predicts the jobless rate will reach 14.8% by 2012. But some labor experts fear that b

The Cornwall Standard Freeholder reports that the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) has established at its annual conference a committee with representatives of municipalities from all over Ontario to deal with the shortage of beds for long-term health care patients and lobby the provincial government for help.  (This sounds connected to some work by municipalities at the AMO conference reported earlier.) Cornwall mayor Bob Kilger said the AMO is putting a document together to incorporate feedback from municipalities all across the province with similar problems. Then the committee will meet with stakeholders, such as hospital officials and government representatives. Councillor Sid Gardiner added the committee should make  progress as it puts pressure on the provincial government with the weight of 90% of Ontario municipalities. Meanwhile the cuts continue.  After the closure of the adult diabetes clinic at the Northumberland Hills Hospital (NHH) earlier this year,