Put health care back on election agenda, doc says

One of the country’s top doctors has a prescription for politicians fixated on tariffs and economic uncertainty during this election — get back to talking about the health-care system.

Dr. Joss Reimer, president of the Canadian Medical Association, who is on a leave from her position as the chief medical officer for the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority, said she believes health care must be an election issue because tariffs and their economic fallout can affect the mental and physical health of Canadians.

Reimer said she is disappointed health care hasn’t been part of the discussion, but she is hopeful it will be in the last weeks of the campaign, heading to the April 28 vote.

“The economy and health are so deeply interlinked and while I completely agree that the economy is a really important election topic, it can’t be separated from health care,” Reimer said on Wednesday.

“So, as we are seeing tariffs, as we are seeing a potential recession, we’re seeing uncertainty in the markets. This all has an effect on the health of Canadians.

She said when the economy suffers, it leads to worsening health outcomes for Canadians and a larger burden on the health care system.

“So we need a strong health care system now more than ever to help mitigate the impact of these threats to our economy.”

Reimer had posted on social media that income is the primary factor of health.

“Now, as our income as a country is being threatened, so is our health. Health care needs to be at the forefront of this federal election, across party lines.

“When your federal candidates ask for your vote, I urge you to ask them, “What will you do to strengthen our healthy system?” the post said.

Molly McCracken, interim spokesperson for the Manitoba Health Coalition, said each party should have “a robust plan to address income inequality and its impact on health care.”

In Manitoba, especially, it must be done in partnership with Indigenous people, McCracken said.

“A greater public investment is needed to ensure every Canadian has access to quality public health care, including pharmacare and dental care. The federal government has a key role in upholding and supporting national standards, while responding also to provincial priorities.”

McCracken said the coalition supports the federal government providing more dedicated and enhanced funding to health care as part of its response to the fallout from tariffs.

“As provincial economies face unprecedented threats from the United States, it is crucial that any additional federal funding designated to support provincial health care systems goes where it is supposed to go,” she said.

Leila Dance, the NDP candidate in the Elmwood-Transcona riding, said health care has been a common topic with constituents as she goes door-knocking.

“When people start talking about health care to me in my riding, they’re talking about the wait times, the lack of family doctors, how long it takes,” Dance said.

“I had one guy at one of the town halls, who has cancer in his jaw and needs a specific type of MRI or X-ray. He’s just been given a referral, and it’s going to take him 13 months to get that referral. What is that cancer going to look like in 13 months, right?”

Elmwood-Transcona is home to the Orthopaedic Innovation Centre, a hip and knee replacement research facility. Out-of-pocket costs for just one knee replacement, she said, is tens of thousands of dollars.

“I know that the federal Conservatives have talked about privatizing, have talked about cutting some of these things, some of these things that are super important and that we need to make sure that we’re continuing to invest in,” Dance said.

“I will always be a strong advocate for increasing the federal funding to help support health care in the province here.”

Over on the other side of the city in the riding of Winnipeg West, Conservative candidate Marty Morantz said when he talks to voters concerned about the state of Canada’s health care, he discusses the “red tape and bureaucracy” that prevents newcomers with health care training to work in Manitoba.

“The joke going around (Parliament) Hill is that, if you’re having a heart attack, it’s quicker to call an Uber because it’s likely that driver will be a doctor or a nurse. That’s pretty sad in Canada,” he said. “New Canadians deserve a fair shot at the Canadian dream as well.”

Morantz said adopting a “blue seal” program, proposed by Tory Leader Pierre Poilievre, would set a nation-wide standard to speed up licensing for qualified doctors and nurses. It would be similar to the red seal program for tradespeople.

“We can get these nurses and doctors actually working in a system,” he said. “We can speed up wait times, speed up diagnostic testing, and get people into the system at the earliest possible time for their health care.”

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A recent Health Canada report said the country is short 23,000 family physicians. Reimer said the federal government should do all it can to help American physicians, both from the U.S. or originally from Canada, relocate to this country.

“Being able to bring in physicians from the U.S., who want to come to Canada, is an amazing opportunity,” she said.

“This is one of those ‘never let a good crisis go to waste.’ If we can try to address some of the physician shortage, by fast-tracking the visa and immigration steps for U.S. physicians, as well as making sure they get fast-track licences once they’re here, this is a big win for Canada.”

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca

malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca

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