April 1 the end of fed healthcare payments?

[grammafreddy]

http://www.castanet.net/news/Kelowna/11 ... e-protests

Health care protests
by Trevor Rockliffe | Story: 112141 - Mar 31, 2014 / 12:11 pm


Photo: Jennifer Zielinski
100 people protest outside of Ron Cannan's office Monday afternoon.

The Hospital Employees’ Union is joining with other health care advocates at rallies at the offices of six BC Conservative MPs today, as part of a national day of action highlighting major reductions in federal health care transfers.

Rallies are taking place in:

Kelowna - Rally at MP Ron Cannan’s office, Capri Mall, 114-1835 Gordon Dr., Kelowna, 12 p.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Princeton - Community rally, Veterans Square, Bridge St. and Vermilion Ave., Princeton, 12 p.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Kamloops - Rally at MP Cathy McLeod’s office, 979 Victoria St., Kamloops, 3:30 p.m. to 4 p.m.

“On March 31, the ten-year-old national Health Accord expires and when it does billions of dollars in federal medicare funding will be lost,” said HEU secretary-business manager Bonnie Pearson at a morning rally in front of Vancouver South Conservative MP Wai Young’s office.

“For BC, beginning in April, over a quarter billion dollars will be slashed from federal health care transfers to our province over the next twelve months.”

“These extreme cuts will only continue to undermine our already struggling public health care system here in BC,” said Pearson.

“Given the economic challenges facing BC, Premier Clark should be leading the charge against the end of the Health Accord,” added Pearson. “After all, when her government was re-elected nearly a year ago, the Premier promised to balance the budget, while also committing to not making cuts to health care.

“These will be difficult promises for the Premier to keep, if Ottawa carries through with these devastating reductions to health care transfers.”

Is this true? Tomorrow is the end of the BC/Fed agreement and all healthcare transfer payment funding from the Feds is gone?

[oneh2obabe]

In 2014, the current health care accord – the deal that sets funding and health care service delivery agreements between the federal and provincial and territorial governments – expires and must be renegotiated. The federal government is ignoring the calls of the provinces and territories to work on a deal, and shockingly announced $36 billion worth of health care cuts which will come into effect after the next federal election in 2015.
http://www.canadians.org/2014accord

When the current accord expires next year, the federal government will continue to increase its health transfers to the provinces for 2014 to 2024, but at a lower rate of increase, and with no strings attached.

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty abruptly unveiled a take-it-or-leave-it plan at a meeting of provincial and territorial finance ministers in Dec. 2011. He committed to a six per cent annual increase in funding for each of the first three years. After that, annual increases will be a minimum of three per cent — or more, if the economy is strong.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/health- ... -1.1309302