=e PREDIC ARE User fees ‘a tax on the sick’ Continued from page 3 vide coverage for services which the govern- Ment has excluded from medicare. Significantly, both have been proposed by One of the chief economic influences on the €tt government, the Fraser Institute. The head of the Canadian Medical lation dismisses extra-billing as any threat to medicare, arguing that it only con- Stitutes two per cent of total physicians’ bill- INgs across the country. But even if that Wgure is correct, it is still significant when it is translated into dollars in each province. Health and Welfare Canada statistics show that extra-billing in Ontario, for exam- Ple, takes an extra $49 million out of pa- ints’ pockets’. In Alberta, it accounts fora otal of $14.5 million. What is worse, it begins the process of ‘eating two levels of care. As government Testraint keeps fee schedules down, extra- a grows and more and more doctors pt out’? in order to extra-bill their pa- “ents. The amount that is extra-billed also 8tOws over the years. Finally only those doc- tors committed to the system are prepared to Provide services at the listed fee. ; Extra-billing is currently prohibited by “gislation in this province. But the Socreds “vy substantial user fees for various services and may, as is widely suspected, have impos- €d the extra-billing ban in’ order to give themselves the future option of levying a Sovernment user fee for a visit to the doctor. British Columbians now pay $8.50 a day Or a stay in an acute-care hospital($10 per Yn some maternity hospitals) and $10 for ra emergency ward visit in addition to fees Boe enlances, day surgery and other ser- The charges are not a deterrent in the same Way as doctors’ extra-billing although Health Minister Monique Begin cites the Fe of a parent not taking a child with a “ver to an emergency ward because of the €€ — which could have tragic consequences RANKIN & COMPANY Barristers & Solicitors 4th Floor, 195 Alexander St., Vancouver, B.C. V6A 1N8 682-2781 Offers a broad range of legal services including: ® Personal Injury and Insurance Claims ® Real Estate and Conveyancing ® Divorce and Family Law if the fever turned out to be a symtom of meningitis. But they are the most regressive form of taxation since they impose the heaviest burden on those with lower incomes. Moreover, Dave Schreck, who is also an economist and the general manager of CU&C Health Services Society, notes that they are economically wasteful since they force each hospital to set up its own accoun- ting department. But for a government which does not sup- port the idea of universal medicare funded by general taxation and publicly ad- ministered, that argument is immaterial. Socred financing abounds with regressive forms of taxation. The federal government has targeted user fees and extra-billing as the main threat to medicare and has proposed to penalize pro- vinces which allow them in a new Canada Health Act, slated for introduction in Parlia- ment in the fall session. The Liberals’ support for universal medicare —in fact, it has launched a publici- ty campaign on “preserving universal medicare’? — has strong election overtones but the dispute is more than a clamor for votes. The federal government’s and Begin’s defence of medicare draws heavily on the recommendations of Justice Emmett Hall, a man who headed the original 1964 royal commission which proposed a universal health services program, and who has head- ed various commissions on updating the system in the years since then. Ina 1979report, Justice Hall recommend- ed that physicians by prohibited from opting out of medicare and extra-billing and also urged that, as money became available, the provinces discontinue user fees and medicare premiums. But since that report most provinces, run by right wing Tory and Social Credit govern- ments, and under pressure from business in- terests, have shifted in the opposite direction — forcing more and more health care costs on to the sick in order to slash provincial health budgets. The ‘‘business first’? approach of those governments was summed up by Alberta Health Minister David Russel who said in July: ‘‘There is a great philosophical dif-. ference between a free enterprise Conser- vative government and a socialistic Liberal government.”’ Inan effort to deflect the federal criticism, the provinces have in turn charged that the federal government has reduced federal sup- port for health care. If is a charge which has some validity since, as a result of financing program changes in 1977 and 1982, there are, in fact, proportionately fewer federal doliars going to the provinces for health care than in 1977, But that is mainly a problem of federal- provincial financing and could be redressed if the federal government were compelled to live up to the recommendations of the 1981 task force which urged that federal support be restored to 1977 levels. It certainly doesn’t threaten the medicare system in the same way as provincial budget-slashing and the growing practice of. extra-billing and user fees. The battle lines have been clearly drawn since at least two provinces, including B.C., have demonstrated that the principles of universal accessibility to the best available health care is distinctly secondary in deter- mining budget priorities. The first major skirmish with the federal government came at the conference of . health ministers Sept..7 and 8. Inevitably there will be more before a draft Canada Health Act is tabled inthe Commons. But even before that, people in this pro- vince will have a fight against Bill 24 which is before the provincial legislature right now. Certainly the future of medicare in 3h Cs depends on its defeat. e@ Labour Law @ Criminal Law e Estates and Will For any of your travel needs, big or small. Let Globe Tours find the best way for you! Hawaii @ Mexico @ Fiji Las Vegas @ Reno @ Calgary Montreal @ Paris @ London GLOBE TOURS 2679 East Hastings Street Vancouver, B.C. V5K1Z5 253-1221 JOIN THE GREAT ewe RY ANNIVERSARY YOUNG COMMUNIST LEAGUE BANQUET Saturday, Sept. 24th AT PERETZ SCHOOL 6184 Ash St., Vancouver - $7.50 EMPLOYED: $5.00 UNEMPLOYED & O.A.P. Children under 12 free 6:30 p.m. Reservations 254-9836 PRO-CHOICE RALLY SET tional day of action for freedom of reproductive choice,”” the Concerned Citizens for Choice on Abortion has an- nounced. The day will be marked by a general meeting at noon on the Queen Elizabeth .Plaza at Hamilton and West Georgia streets in Vancouver, followed by a rally at the Commodore ballroom at 1 p.m. ‘Saturday, Oct. 1 has been set asa ‘‘na- |) {CLASSIFIED ~—s Ke COMING EVENTS SEPT. 23 — Film premiere The Spiral. Vancouver Technical School Auditorium, 2600 E. Broad- way, 8 p.m. Adm. $4, unempl. $3. eae Solidarity Office with ile. SEPT. 24 — YCL 60th anniversary banquet, 6:30 p.m. Peretz School. See display ad-for details. SEPT. 25 — Surrey Alternative movement dinner and panel discus- sion on the budget. 5:30 p.m., Strawberry Hill Hall, 12152—75 Ave., Surrey. For info. 596-1355. RUSSIAN PEOPLE’S HOME EVENTS SEPT. 29 — Adult's basic conver- sational Russian language classes. 7:30 p.m., 600 Campbell Ave. For: info. 526-5160, 278-8779, 298-1513. OCT. 2 — Report-back with slides on the Prague Peace Assembly. 1:30 p.m., 600 Campbell Ave. For info. 420-5866 or 526-5160. OCT. 1 — You are cordially invited to a farewell party for Nick and Chantal, 2063 E. 12th Ave., Lakewood Terrace Co-op, 8 p.m. OCT. 29 — Keep this date open for annual Mackenzie-Papineau Dinner and Dance. COMMERCIAL GRAMMA PUBLICATIONS. Complete printing services. Brochures, menus, leaflets, etc. Special rates for the progressive movement. A union shop. 1595 W. 3rd Ave., Van. Hours: Mon.-Fri. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sat. 12 noon to 5 p.m. 733-6822. ROOF REPAIRS — New roofs. Reasonable. Ph. 277-3352. ELECTRICAL, plumbing, ap- pliance repairs. Don Berg, 255-7287. LEGAL SERVICES RANKIN, McMURRAY, BOND. Barristers and Solicitors. Second floor, 157 Alexander St. 682-3621. DIRECTORY COMMUNIST PARTY OF CAN- ADA offices located at 102-2747 E. Hastings St., Van. Ph. 254-9836. For information on political issues or assistance in political activity. HALLS FOR RENT RUSSIAN PEOPLE’S HOME — Available for rentals. For reserva- tions phone 254-3430. WEBSTERS CORNERS HALL — Available for banquets, meetings, etc. For rates: Ozzie, 325-4171 or UKRAINIAN CANADIAN CUL- TURAL CENTRE — 805 East Pen- der St., Vancouver. Available for banquets, weddings, meetings. Ph 254-3436. ADVERTISING | ee J PACIFIC TRIBUNE—SEPTEMBER 21, 1983—Page 11