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PEIUPSE questions need for health care corporation

'Is this really the answer?' - Shelley Ward, president of the P.E.I. Union of Public Sector Employees.

Shelley Ward, president of the P.E.I. Union of Public Sector Employees (PEIUPSE/NUPGE)Charlottetown (8 Jan. 2010) - The P.E.I. government recently announced plans to create a new arm's length corporation called the P.E.I. Health Services Corporation to deliver health services across the province.

The P.E.I. Union of Public Sector Employees (PEIUPSE/NUPGE) is questioning the wisdom of embarking on yet another exercise to restructure health care on the Island, especially at a time when fiscal restraint is paramount. 

"Do we really need to create a corporation with an appointed board to run health care at a time when the province is running an $84 million deficit?" asks Shelley Ward, the union's president.

"Isn't this just another example of how our tax dollars are being squandered?  This is the fourth restructure attempt of the health care system in the past fifteen years." 

Ward says the former government of Pat Binns eliminated four regional health boards and the provincial health services authority in 2005.

"The administration of health care was then placed within the department of health itself. Since then improvements in government accountability and spending have been directed largely to providing health care services for Islanders," she notes.

"For example, we now have a much needed stroke unit, there have been improvements to our cancer treatment center, and we have seen important decisions on the delivery of health care services made under the scrutiny of the current government."

So why, Ward wonders, does the current government want to create a new structure that will place distance between itself and the health care system.

"It appears they are tired of taking responsibility for the increased cost of health care and are hoping a corporation with an unelected board can provide them safe haven," she suggests.

"I think we should all consider the possibility that the creation of the P.E.I. Health Services Corporation could signify the beginning of the end for our publicly-driven, publicly-delivered health care system."

NUPGE

The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 340,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE