Medicare, Phase II

I keep getting copies of a magazine called “albertaviews” (unrequested). Today I decided to read the article on “Medicare: Phase 2, a conference with the Answers. It was actually quite humorous. In a nutshell they claimed the solutions to our problems could all be solved with telling people to live healthy lifestyles and to have health providers work in groups (obviously a totally new concepts!!). Oh, yes, and the keynote speaker, Greg Marchildon, the former executive director of the Romanow Commission, extolled Tommy Douglass’s vision of “Idealism---dream no little dreams, pragmatism----work with what you have, and Tenacity, act regardless of the means”. Isn’t that how we got to today’s’ deplorable state? But then they went on to say that our healthcare system certainly is sustainable! Yes, health care is taking a greater and greater percentage of the government’s budget but the problem is those dastardly pharmaceutical companies; and the fact that the government doesn’t tax you and I sufficiently. Well, I don’t know about you, but I am taxed sufficiently (I think Canada ranks about third highest taxed of the industrialized countries, depending on what you call a tax).
If this is to be informative journalism, no point in reading the other articles; and I certainly won’t assist disinformation by putting it in my waiting room. Sounds more like “Saskatchewanviews”. Little wonder my wastebasket fills up quickly!!!