OTTAWA – The last sitting of the Saskatchewan legislature before next year’s provincial election wraps up in just a few weeks. Yet Premier Brad Wall believes he still has enough time to push through Bill 179, the MRI Facilities Licensing Act. The act opens the door to private user-pay MRIs in Saskatchewan.
“This is not the Saskatchewan I grew up in,” says Michael Butler, Health Care campaigner for the Council of Canadians. “Universal access to health care is a cornerstone not only of this province, the heartland of medicare, but of the country. The last election showed that Canadians are tired of cynical politics and politicians manipulating public fears. Premier Wall is in no position to force through this two-tiered health care bill, which will allow queue-jumping for the wealthy while the rest of us wait. The people of Saskatchewan deserve much better.”
The Council of Canadians and CUPE Saskatchewan conducted a five-city tour of the province in September 2015 to raise awareness about the increasing privatization of public health care in the province.
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IMAGE: Prince Albert Health Care Festival, September 2015 (high-res version available)
