‘Obituary’ written for Manitoba health care

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This article was published 20/12/2021 (1552 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitoba’s health-care system is dead to Barry Elkin and he has gone to unusual lengths to let the premier know.

Under a headline stating “obituary notice,” the retired accountant took out an advertisement in the Dec. 11 edition of the Free Press to announce the “passing” of health care in the province.

Elkin, 82, encouraged readers to offer “condolences” to Premier Heather Stefanson by phone or email — some did, he said — and his dark humour caught the attention of opposition leaders.

“It is with sadness that I announce the passing of Manitoba’s health-care system after a lengthy illness caused by a lack of political wisdom and vision,” his ad stated. “It leaves to mourn the thousands of Manitobans waiting for surgery and diagnostic tests.”

Elkin, who lives in Winnipeg, said the purpose was to call on the Progressive Conservative government to increase health funding and add front-line staff to clear the backlog of medical procedures which has grown during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I was looking to get people to recognize that if we don’t have proper funding, we don’t have universal health care,” he said. “It’s backed up to the hilt and no one is doing anything about it.”

Elkin listed Stefanson’s public phone number and email address at the bottom and invited Manitobans to offer messages of condolence to her.

He said he’s aware readers contacted her office, but he doesn’t know how many called or emailed.

“My objective is to get the current government to deal with the situation and look at our health-care system and decide how we want to continue,” said Elkin, who worked in the federal auditor general’s office in Ottawa before his retirement.

“The government is not prepared or hasn’t been prepared to fund the health system properly and it’s probably because it takes guts to do that. Governments don’t like to raise money through (taxpayers) or debt unless it’s something real big and shiny.”

Photos of the ad were shared on social media and Elkin said the feedback he received was mostly positive.

NDP Leader Wab Kinew and Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont sent supportive emails after Elkin blitzed the inboxes of MLAs with a letter outlining his concerns.

“I thought it was very clear and, very sadly, apt,” Lamont said of the advertisement. “We do not have the health-care resources to care for everyone in Manitoba.”

Elkin said he is in “no position” to come up with a figure for how much extra cash should be injected into the system.

That’s a job for politicians and experts in the government, he said.

His assessment of health care in Manitoba doesn’t fault only the PCs.

Previous NDP governments share the blame, he said.

In an emailed statement, Stefanson said the province committed $812 million in the 2021 budget to “build, renew and expand” facilities.

“This significant investment — the largest in our province’s history — will support roughly 38 projects that will improve access and enhance the quality and reliability of care, while reducing provincial wait times,” the premier said. “Addressing the diagnostic and surgical backlogs, as well as related services affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, is a top priority for our government.”

Earlier this month, the government announced a task force to come up with solutions to clear the backlog of medical procedures and diagnostic tests. One option is to send patients out of the province.

More than 152,000 medical procedures have been postponed since the pandemic started, an increase of 6,675 procedures from last month, the Doctors Manitoba’s online dashboard says.

chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @chriskitching