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Sharon Berry, a dedicated BCHC Steering Committee member, has stepped down from the committee after many years of service as a representative of the Council of Canadians Vancouver Chapter. The BCHC's work has benefited from her sharp eye and passion for justice. Sharon will continue to sit on the Private Clinics Campaign working group. Thank you, Sharon!
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The BCHC is happy to welcome Kurtis Chow as our Community Health Development Worker. A second year Communications student at Simon Fraser University, Kurtis has personally benefited from the public health care system and is ecstatic to contribute to its ongoing success and the efforts of the BCHC to improve it. He will be coordinating our community outreach efforts this summer. Have an event we should know about?
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| BCHC questions Medical Services Commission's ability to protect patients from unlawful user charges | ||
| FOI reveals that auditors failed to verify Copeman's claims that there was no preferential treatment at its member-only primary care clinic. | ||
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| The BC Health Coalition is calling for an inquiry into the provincial government's ability to ensure that patients get fair access to physician services after it was discovered the Medical Services Commission (MSC) did not perform a test of access during its 2007 audit of Vancouver's Copeman Healthcare Centre. Information that the BCHC received through its latest FOI request confirms our worst suspicions: the very body that is responsible for ensuring that all B.C. residents have the kind of equal access to medical care required under our health care laws, appears unwilling or unable to protect that access. Why did Medical Services Commission auditors find no evidence of wrongdoing? Because they didn't see. Auditors did not phone or try to book an appointment in order to verify Copeman's policies stating that non-members would not be charged for access to insured services. In short, they didnt find any evidence of unlawful user charges because they didnt look for any. Because they didn't hear. When patients complained about Copemans demands for thousands of dollars in unlawful user fees to access its doctors the MSC told them it had no concerns with Copeman's billing practices. Because they didn't speak. After the audit the MSC refused to meet with the BCHC and would not answer our questions on how or if a test of access was undertaken as part of its audit. No more monkey business! Our provincial government has a responsibility to enforce our health care laws to ensure fair and equitable access for all. TAKE ACTION! Click here to join us in calling for a provincial inquiry into the Medical Services Commission's failure to enforce our health care laws. | ||
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| Don't trade our health care away! | ||
| Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement could have dire implications for health care | ||
The BC Health Coalition is very concerned about the effects of the proposed Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) in light of a new economic assessment which shows that CETA could increase the cost of public and private drug plans by as much as $2.8 billion per year. There is also concern that services and investment provisions in CETA may undermine the North American Free Trade Agreement's (NAFTA) already weak protections for public health care and health insurance. The BC Health Coalition, along with the Council of Canadians BC/Yukon Office, is calling on the province to stop negotiating CETA with the EU and instead carry out a transparent public assessment on CETA's potential impacts on health care. The next round of CETA negotiations are scheduled to take place in Brussels July 11-15, 2011. TAKE ACTION! Click here to add your voice to the BCHC's call for a halt to negotiations. | ||
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| UBCM 2011: Call on your Municipal Council to take action to protect and expand public health care in British Columbia! | ||
Municipal governments from around the province will gather from September 26 to 30 at the UBCM Annual General Meeting in order to address common issues and share concerns with the provincial government.
This year the City of Victoria is bringing forward a resolution calling on the province to stop the expansion of for-profit surgical and MRI/CT clinics. This year is the second time the resolution will be on the General Meeting agenda.
Municipal governments can play an important role in protecting public health services in our communities. Support for this resolution is just one of the ways that municipal officials can take a stand to protect and improve our public health care system and promote the development of public, not-for-profit health care facilities.
TAKE ACTION! Click here to e-mail your Municipal Council and ask that it support the pro-public health care resolution. If this resolution passes, it will send an important signal to the provincial government and the private, for-profit clinic owners who are setting up shop in B.C.
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| Volunteer with BCHC this summer! | ||
 Are you the kind of person who loves attending summer festivals, events and concerts? Why not combine that sense of fun with some good old-fashioned public outreach on health care issues! The BC Health Coalition will be attending several events over the summer to get people engaged in important issues by signing petitions, chatting about their concerns and getting people more actively involved with the Coalition and its work. We could sure use your help! If you would like to give us a hand with some tabling - or if you have some fun new ideas about how to make our outreach appealing and get folks excited about public health care - we want to hear from you! Get in touch with Darlene, our Outreach Coordinator at outreach@bchealthcoaltion.ca to find out more. |
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| Get Covered! | ||
 Looking for a creative way to show your support for public health care in your community? Join Medicare supporters across BC in our photo rally! We've got red umbrellas and message cards that you can use at parades, festivals, your home, farmers markets, the ballpark - wherever you might be this summer. We'll send you the props, you send us the pictures you've taken and we'll add them to our visual map of supporters for positive, public solutions to strengthen Medicare. Volunteer opportunities are available right now for those living in the Lower Mainland. If you live outside the Lower Mainland our staff can put you in contact with health care defenders in your own community. Join the Rally! Click here for info on how to get everything you'll need. |
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| BC Health Coalition • 411 Dunsmuir Street Vancouver, BC V6B 1X4 P: 604-681-7945 • F: 604-681-7947 • Email: info@bchealthcoalition.ca |
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