Premier Christy Clark, how do you like her so far?

[Urbane]

OK cool! I think you'd be surprised at how few "medical tourists" they'd have, and how many BC residents, fed up with wait times and the quality of care they receive under government health care, would partake of the WFN hospitality and responsive operating times. I know of quite a few Baby-boomers that have gone south of the border, for various reasons, simply to get operations that would take them years to get here, and now that money will stay in Canada. Bully for the WFN!

Indeed! And there are countries with universal health care and virtually no wait times so we need to take off our blinders and have a look at improving our system.

[NAB]

I don't agree with the government plan for two new hospitals, and I actually live on Vancouver Island. It is a politically motivated decision rather than a practical one IMO. Campbell River already has a hospital, and Nanaimo Hospital has received significant expansion and upgrades. Where this money should have gone IMO is to one new state of the art hospital in Courtenay/Comox plus a small sub emergency receiver / trauma hospital approximately midway between Courtenay and Nanaimo.

Nab

[The Green Barbarian]

Indeed! And there are countries with universal health care and virtually no wait times so we need to take off our blinders and have a look at improving our system.

I think we need politicians with the guts to tell the crazy faction of our populace, who freak out at any mention of any sort of change to our current system, to shut up, and let them fix what is broken. I had a faint hope that the Romanow Commission would introduce some radical changes to our current system, but then realized that when you put a staunch NDP socialist in charge of anything, that there is only one real result that is guaranteed, he/she is going to recommend that you spend more money, and continue to pour it down the same black hole, and that's exactly what Romanow recommended, no change to the broken system, just "more money" dedicated to the same broken system that isn't working. That's not good enough.

[NAB]

..so at what point is the price of trust broken with Adrian Dix? Are we supposed to just forget that he violated the public trust by obstructing justice and uttered a forged document? Or does that not matter because he was NDP? Just curious.

You will perhaps notice GB that I didn't point expressly to either party, or their present or past leadership. My assertion regarding trust over-riding any good things they accomplished applies equally to all of them.

Nab

[The Green Barbarian]

You will perhaps notice GB that I didn't point expressly to either party, or their present or past leadership. My assertion regarding trust over-riding any good things they accomplished applies equally to all of them.

Nab

Fair enough.

[hobbyguy]

The hospital/medical system discussion is a tough one, as I think that expectations play a big role. Somehow we seem to think that we can afford to have state of the art for every condition in every place. Not only do we have a demographic bulge that is going to make this nigh on to impossible, but we also have a technological explosion in treatments available (which inevitably seem to be expensive).

Simple example: it used to be that if you got old and your knee wore out, the treatment was a cane and a bottle of aspirin. I know - back in the stone age again. Now you get a new knee, and expect to get it chop, chop!

Are our expectations too high?

[The Green Barbarian]

Are our expectations too high?

I think so, but on the other hand, if you have a whack of cash in the bank that you are just going to be leaving to your inconsiderate grandkids anyway, why not spend a small portion of it on a new knee so you can at least have a better quality of life in your golden years? At least offer the option, anyway.

[NAB]

Perhaps the public system should be based on medical insurance against factory defects, normal wear and tear excepted ;-)

Anything else and you are on your own.

Nab

[Bestside]

When Governments took over vehicle insurance the auto body shops hit the jackpot. They didn't have to compete with other shops for business and repair costs increased substantially. I recall an accident to my vehicle and getting it fixed for 1/2 of what the public insurance would have paid to fix it.

Is there any comparison to Doctors fees if they were not on a fixed rate schedule? Everyone says the Dr. costs in the USA are high. Do they just seem high because the individual has to pay the Dr., or are they any higher in the USA than what the fixed fee is in Canada?

Basically governments get screwed on costs for everything... and the government is usually complicit in the transaction with their business friends.

[Smurf]

I believe if you check our system will pay a doctor in the US the going rate for the same procedure in BC if you have an emergency down there. However that rate is never even close to the rate that the US doctors and hospitals cost. If you put a claim in to the insurance you bought to go to the states, the first thing they do is send it to the Province for them to pay their share. They then pay the balance less your deductible if you`re lucky. If it is anything major at all it will be a huge difference, in many cases 10`s of thousands of dollars. I have talked to a few people who have been in huge trouble because their insurance refused to pay and they had bills that almost ruined their lives even after medical paid their normal fees. I have never been involved with it but have friends with horror stories.

[flamingfingers]

SHAMEFUL! Absolutely SHAMEFUL!

Seniors are still waiting Madame Premier

Two months after announcing a new “Seniors' Home Renovation Tax Credit” the Liberals have not yet managed to introduce the enabling legislation required to get the program up and running.

http://www.newsroom.gov.bc.ca/2012/03/r ... niors.html

On March 28th Premier Christy Clark herded the media to a home out in Saanich where she proudly announced that effective April 1st the tax credit would be available to help with the cost of permanent home renovations so that British Columbians aged 65 and over will have the flexibility to remain in their own homes longer.

"Home is where the heart is,” the premier said.

If there was a little déjà vu happening that day it was probably because the tax credit had been announced way back in February as part of Budget 2012/13. Re-announcing good news has become a preferred option in the premier’s playbook as she struggles to claw back some credibility with lapsed supporters.

The refundable credit is worth up to $1,000 and, as you can imagine, seniors galore are keen to get started on their spring renovation projects and have been scrambling to get specifics. What projects are eligible? The shingles? The weather stripping around the windows and doors? That annoying leak in the basement?

The government press release on the new program included a Ministry of Finance phone number that I called. I quickly learned that routine home upgrades do not qualify. No shingle replacement. No weather stripping. No leaking pipe repairs. In fact, the government is specifically excluding general maintenance, roof repairs, windows, flooring, insulation, painting, medical monitoring devices, home security and smoke alarms.

To be accurate this initiative should be called the “Mobility-Challenged Seniors’ Home Renovation (Partial) Tax Credit.” Upgrades must be related to accessibility issues ... wheelchair ramps, walk-in bathtubs, motion activated lighting.

No problem. There’s plenty of time to change the title and the details of the program because the legislation that allows the program to exist has still not been tabled in the Legislature.

Because the premier’s dog and pony show for the media happened in Saanich, NDP MLA Lana Popham (Saanich South) has received a number of inquiries from excited seniors. She says: “My community office continues to receive calls, emails and visits from seniors who are excited about a brand new program that has already been announced and re-announced several times by the BC Liberals.

“According to a press release sent out by the government April 1st, the $1000 ... tax credit is now available. However, when my staff contacted the Ministry (of Finance) ... to get more information for inquiring constituents we learned that the program is actually not available. In fact, there is no way to apply for it. The exact rules of the program have not been established and the enabling legislation has not even been introduced.

“In addition, the $1,000 figure is the maximum allowable and only available if seniors do repairs worth at least $10,000,” Popham says.

The thing I find most disturbing is that the Liberals will likely spend more money promoting and re-promoting this program than they will return to seniors in tax credits.

It boggles the mind that this government – dedicated to putting “families first” – can’t even manage to introduce a legislated seniors’ tax credit that actually helps the majority of seniors who could use a helping hand to upgrade their homes.

http://www.briankieran.com/

[Bestside]

SHAMEFUL! Absolutely SHAMEFUL!

No, It's STUPID! Absolutely STUPID!

Who puts her up to this stuff? Clark should have their head on a plate before she goes out and slams the door behind her!

[NAB]

Actually, it was/is rather stupid when you consider the paperwork and formalities associated with such a program, including the still taxable labour under the HST which nets you less bang for the buck anyway. Anyone with a few brains can accomplish a project and save far more than a 10% government "tax credit on qualifying upgrades" produces, particularly when you consider labour is often the largest cost component of a project. Perhaps when the PST returns it will make more sense to have such legislation. Until then it may as well just stay on the shelf gathering dust - or better yet just get sent to the shredder.

The thing is nothing more than another meaningless political ploy anyway.

Nab

[George+]

Clark and Co lose again to...Dr. Seuss!

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid ... =1&theater

A decade long battle by the BC Liberals and their school board allies to ban political expression in schools has come to an absurd conclusion in Prince Rupert. (Dr. Seuss quote too political, April 26).

School district administration in 2002 tried to suppress teachers from posting material on school bulletin boards and from communicating to parents at interviews. This material focussed on loss of funding and increased pressures on classrooms. The matter eventually was heard by the BC Appeal Court which ruled that the directions were unconstitutional and breached the fundamental freedom of expression rights.

Madame Justice Huddart stated in the majority decision “...teachers cannot be 'silent members of society' in light of the importance of a 'free and robust public discussion of public issues' to democratic society (at 466-67). The School Boards cannot prevent teachers from expressing opinions just because they step onto school grounds. School grounds are public property where political expression must be valued and given its place.”

During the current dispute, teachers across BC have faced increased threats of disciplinary action for sporting buttons as benign as “Proud to be a Teacher” or for protesting cuts to public education to Minister Abbott during his school visits.

Huddart also noted that justifying as reasonable the breach of basic expression rights has be be ”subjected to a 'searching degree of scrutiny'” and not taken lightly. It is unlikely that the actions taken by school board administration under the watch of the BC Liberals has met that standard. Also unlikely is that attitudes will change while the BC Liberals continue to demonstrate the willingness to ignore constitutional rights.

[Bestside]

I have a problem with deeming schools to be "public property".
Is a machine shop or office building where people go to work "public property"?