Liberals focus on medicare




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Liberals focus on medicare

George Smitherman vows to make good on campaign promises.

By Keith Leslie, The London Free Press
October 28, 2003

Ontario 's new Liberal government will focus on the prevention of illness and restoring public confidence in medicare as it takes over the $28-billion Health Ministry, new minister George Smitherman said yesterday. Medicare is "the best expression of Canadian values," Smitherman said after literally rolling up his sleeves to get a flu shot and kick off the province's $44-million immunization program. "We want to work very hard on the preventive side of health care," said Smitherman, who called the free flu shots "a very significant example" of how the government can refocus the health-care system to prevent illnesses in the first place.

"One thing that all Ontarians can do is they can get a flu shot," said Smitherman, who insisted it's especially important this year "to be sure that we can distinguish between symptoms of the flu and other, similar diseases like SARS."

Some Toronto hospitals had to close their doors to new patients last spring after the SARS outbreak hit the city, claiming 44 lives.

Smitherman doesn't want to see emergency rooms "plugged up with people that could have prevented" the trip to the hospital by getting a flu shot.

Smitherman, who admits he has been "struck by the complexity" of Ontario's huge Health Ministry since taking over the job last week, also said he wants to address primary care reform and salary negotiations with doctors and nurses as he eases into the job.

"Obviously, negotiations on the human resources front are a challenge," said Smitherman, who wants to negotiate a new deal with doctors through the Ontario Medical Association, and to make "more of our nurses full-time."

He also promised action to increase access to health services closer to people's homes.

Smitherman said voters also expect the Liberals to follow through on promises to get rid of private MRI and CAT scan clinics and to eliminate deals signed by the previous Conservative government to let the private sector build new hospitals in Ottawa and Brampton under public-private-partnerships.

"It would be safe to assume that the commitments that we made in the election are things that we're giving an early focus to," Smitherman said.