Alberta government health reform short on specifics

Closed-door meetings criticized for 'vague, nice principles' with few details

By Sheila Pratt, Edmonton Journal

Senior citizen Wilma Morin said she hopes the government got the message on health reform.

She was one of 50 Edmontonians at a closed-door meeting last week in Castle Downs to discuss the proposed new Alberta Health Act.

People were cautious but firm about protecting the public health-care system, Morin said as she left the hall.

"We all agreed we'd pay more taxes or pay medicare premiums again to keep our public health care, but you have to be cautious about a new law."

Edmonton MLA Fred Horne, the government's point man on health reform, said he received a clear message after the community meeting, the first of two in Edmonton.

"A number of people said to me, 'You should not assume the public trusts this process,' " he said. That's especially true for people who work in the health-care system, he said.

Horne said his job is "to build trust" among people with the proposed Alberta Health Act and a patient charter. These two new laws will pave the way for a major reorganization of hospitals and health-care services outside hospitals, as far-reaching as the "third way" that was debated and rejected in the Klein era.

Horne says he's pleased with the "frankness" of the debate and support from the public for the principles.

Sam Gunsch was looking for specifics.

"What problem are they trying to fix? They don't say," Gunsch said.

"With these vague, nice principles, like patient-focused care, equitable access, well, they're making a nice icing and then they go away and bake the kind of cake they want after."

Earlier, Gunsch tried to ask a question in the brief open part of the meeting. He wanted specific examples of what would be done differently under the new act.

But Horne shut down all questions in the open forum, saying discussions were to take place in small groups.

The closed, small-group discussions are the best way to have a "dialogue" and protect citizens from media glare, said Horne.

"For this kind of work, we need people to engage in a dialogue rather than listen to one person at a time at a microphone. A certain number of people will always be skeptical."

Edmonton Liberal MLA Kevin Taft was "dismayed" at the level of manipulation of the discussions.

"People wanted to ask the question: Do we need a new Alberta Health Act? And there was also a lot of resistance to the patient charter, but all that was overruled. The group was told there will be a patient charter and asked to comment," Taft said.

"People there understood the patient charter won't address the real immediate problems, for instance, the shortage of cancer doctors."

Taft also said Horne should take the longer view and tell people where the health system is going under the new provincial health act.

"Will this open the door to more private delivery?" Taft asked.

Horne said his mandate is to consult Albertans on the new provincial health act, not what comes after.

The proposed health act is designed as "enabling" legislation.

That means, after it becomes law, the government can make changes to the health-care system through cabinet order rather than taking new policies to the legislature.

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EDMONTON-AREA MEETINGS

- -Thursday, June 24, Vermilion, Lakeland College (afternoon)

- -Thursday, June 24, Camrose, Edgeworth Centre (evening)

- -Monday, June 28, Spruce Grove, Elks Hall (afternoon)

- -Monday, June 28, Edmonton, Ridgewood Community Hall (evening)

This article was published in the Edmonton Journal on June 23, 2010. Read the full article on the edmontonjournal.com website.