recommendations
would be passed along to the

most of the
government departments  con-
cerned but warned that to imple-
ment them all would cost “a

king’s ransom.”

South Africa

One proposal he © definitely
stated would not be accepted.
This was the CLC’s suggestion
on South Africa. In explaining he
said, “We're bound to disagree
within the commonwealth, but

Saskatchewan

New Medical

the essence of the commonwealth
is the independence of each nation.
What would our reaction be in
Canada if some other country in
the commonwealth criticized us?”

In rebuttal CLC President
Jodoin stated. “In this case it is
a matter of principle, a matter
of human rights. We feel very
keenly about this because it 1s an
internationally known discrinina-
tion and we hoped that your
government would take an official
stand.”

Plans
Scheme

The Saskatchewan government has announced plans to
introduce in 1961 a prepaid medical care program covering

eyery citizen in the province.

The plans — if they reach fruit-
ation — would mark another ma-
jor triumph in the field of social
welfare for the CCF administra-
tion and would be a major advance
along the road to complete health
insurance in Canada.

In 1947 the Saskatchewan gov-
ernment became the first in North
America to introduce hospital in-

surance.
N.H.I. Act
Ten years later the National
Hospital Insurance Act was

passed and the rest of Canada,
with the exception of Quebec, fin-
ally caught up with the wheat
province.

Now Saskatchewan, receiving at
last federal money for hospital
insurance, has decided to take the
lead once more.

In announcing his plans, Prem-
ier Douglas predicted that ‘before
1970 almost every other province
in Canada will have followed the
lead of Saskatchewan and we shall
have a national health insurance
program from the Atlantic to the
Pacific.”

Provincial Election

The only possible stumbling
block to the CCF plans is the
coming election in Saskatchewan.
Premier Douglas has made it clear
that he intends to fight the elec-
tion on the issue of medical in-
surance.

Premier Douglas told the Sas-

_ katchewan people that the govern-

ment “is convinced that the time
has arrived when we can establish
a prepaid medical care plan as the
next logical step in our march to-
ward a comprehensive health in-
surance program.”

He said that while most people
in the province can get good med-
ical care “ the fact remains that
there are some people who are
unwilling to seek medical care be-
cause of the high costs involved.”
Premier Douglas quoted the Can-
adian Sickness Survey of 1951
which showed that lower income
groups had a higher rate of ill-
ness, yet a lower rate of medical
care than did their more wealthy
counterparts.

Public Programmes

Already more than 50 per cent
of doctors’ incomes in Saskatche-
wan is paid from public programs
or through voluntary and com-
mercial medical care plans, the
CCF leader said.

Unfortunately, however, there
are many people who cannot avail

themselves of the voluntary plans,

either because they cannot afford

the premiums or because they
have congenital conditions which

are not covered by them.

Douglas outlined five
iples within which the

ward a program if they pay some
portion of the cost directly on a
prepayment basis.” This means the
costs will be spread over the entire
population and will limit any ten-
dency to abuse the system.

Universal coverage. If the plan
was on a voluntary basis “there
would be a tendency for those who
are more prone to sickness to
come into the plan while the
healthier age groups would tend
to stay out.” The cost of admin-
istration is much less where there
is universal coverage.

High quality. “We believe that
a medical care program must have
as its major objective the improve-
ment of quality of care as well
as better distribution and avail-
ability of care.” Also the plan will
permit the integration of curative
and preventative services.

Democratic administration, The
plan will be administered by a
public body’ responsible to the
legislature and through it to the
entire population.

Patient-doctor relationship. “We
have no intention of pushing some
pre-conceived plan down the doc-
tors’ throats. We want their co-
operation.” The government be-
lieves that the principle of free
choice of doctor must be retained.

Premier Douglas said his gov-
ernment will soon appoint an ad-
visory planning committee on
medical care. The committee will
be provided with on “adequate”
secretariat and will be asked to
submit their final report during
the latter part of 1960,

Unemployed
Cheated By

ULC.

CCF House Leader Hazen
Argue charged in the Com-
mons that unemployed are
being defrauded by “unfair and
vicious” regulations of the
unemployment insurance com-
mission,

Labour Minister Starr denied
the charge and said no consid-
eration has been given to
changing the regulations.

Mr. Starr said regulations
which went into effect Sept.
27 mean holiday pay now is
considered regular earnings for
purposes of unemployment in-
surance benefits,

A claimant’s benefits thus
would start two weeks later

B.c. LUMBER WORKER

WILLIAM EPSTEIN, Chief of the Armament Control and Enforcement
Measures of the Political Department of the United Nations, New York,
left and Kalmen Kaplansky, Canadian Labour Congress Director of Inter-

national Affairs, enjoy a spirited conversation between courses at the
CLC 4th Annual Staff Conference and Winter School held in Parksville,
Vancouver Island, January 25-29.

Faithful To The End

All his working life he took the benefits won for him by the Union but he
refused to become a member. Then, on his deathbed he told his wife: ‘Darling,
please do something for me. 1 want the union members in my department to
be my pallbearers.

“But you never belonged to the Union,” his wife objected. “Why do you
want the members to be your pallbearers?”

“Honey,” he replied, “They carricd me this far; they might as well carry
me the rest of the wey.’

From Page 1

“Council”

Ist Vice-president, Dave Chap-
man, Machinists Union; 2nd Vice-
president, Mel Kemmis, Bakery

Workers Union (by acclamation); °

3rd_ Vice - president, H. B.
Hodgins, Retail, Wholesale and
Department Store Union; Secre-
tary-Treasurer, C. P. (Paddy)
Neale, formerly Recording Sec-
retary, Local 1-217, IWA, and
more recently Assistant Secretary
of the B.C. Federation of Labour;

Public Relations Committee
Chairman, Al Coleman, Barbers’
Union; Legislative Committee

Chairman, John Henderson, Build-
ing Service Employees (by accla-
mation); Organization Comiunittee
Chairman, Wyman Trineer, Local
1-357, IWA (by acclamation);
Grievance Committee Chairman,
Sid Thompson, Local 1-217, IWA:
Education Committee Chairman,
John Hayward, Street Railway-
men's Union; Credentials Com-
mittee -Chairman, A. Barnes,

Teamsters’ Union.

Lloyd Whalen, former Presi-
dent of, the Vancouver Labour
Council withdrew his nomination
a few days prior to the meeting
on the ground that he had accep-
ted a post with the Teamster’s
Union as an organizer.

Alderman A. E. Jamieson, past
Secretary-Treasurer of the Labour
Council, declined nomination this
year so that he could devote more
time to his aldermanic duties,

Dear Diary — On my 28th day without food.
Still of sound mind, I ate my right DAYTON—

which tasted as good as it looked.

CO. (B6.¢.) LTD.

2248-50 East Hastings St.
Vancouver, B.C.

SHOE MANUFACTURING

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