OTTAWA—Canada has failed in its humanitarian duty to protect the human right to health in the form of safe and low cost medicines for the people in developing countries, says a study released today by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).
Canadian reports have recommended that health as a human right must be Canada’s overarching global commitment and that the primacy of human rights should be prioritized over other elements of international law, including international trade and investment law as it applies to pharmaceuticals.
Health, health care system, pharmacare
Canadian reports have recommended that health as a human right must be Canada’s overarching global commitment and that the primacy of human rights should be prioritized over other elements of international law including international trade and investment law as it applies to access to pharmaceuticals. This paper uses a series of case reports to examine Canada’s commitment to this goal. Specifically, it examines cases where improved access has been in conflict with increased intellectual property rights.
Social factors play a significant role in determining whether we will be healthy or ill. Our health care is but one element of what makes the biggest difference in health outcomes. This has been understood for centuries, and empirically validated in recent decades with study after study demonstrating health inequalities between wealthy and disadvantaged populations.
(Vancouver) A year and a half after the release of an exhaustive and damning report on the state of seniors care by the province’s Ombudsperson, the BC government has largely failed to make meaningful improvements.
In 2012, the BC Ombudsperson made 140 recommendations to the Ministry of Health to improve seniors care by fixing BC’s home and community health care system. How has the government responded? They’ve implemented just 6% of the recommendations and ignored most of the rest. But not only do seniors deserve quality home and community care, it also keeps seniors out of hospital, which saves money and improves health care for everyone.
This study finds that the Comprehensive and Economic Trade Agreement (CETA) between the European Union and Canada will further tilt the balance towards the protection of brand-name drug manufacturers and their profits and away from Canadian consumers—resulting in significantly higher drug costs for Canadians. The study also examines the latest revelations about the tentative trade agreement, and asserts that the CETA will seriously impact the ability of Canadians to afford quality health care.
The long-term care (LTC) sector in Manitoba is facing serious challenges. Manitoba, like the rest of Canada, is faced with an aging population, increasing the demands on the LTC system and the need for funding. According to Statistics Canada, over the past ten years the number of Manitobans aged 65+ has grown from 156,420 in 2001, to 172,450 in 2011. While in 2011 seniors made up 14% of Manitoba’s population, seniors could account for 22.5% of Manitoba by 2036.
The BC government recently rejected the recommendation of the Union of BC Municipalities to re-instate Riverview Hospital. Our government has made the right decision. The debate and media coverage over recent weeks has revealed a number of important issues that have reframed questions about Riverview Hospital, and the Premier is correct in her comments that there is a new set of problems we need to deal with.”
Highlights of recent CCPA-BC research. Inside this issue Time to rethink BC’s LNG plans by Ben Parfitt; Why wheelchair fees are not fair and what they say about the state of seniors care in BC by Janine Farrell; Why does BC have the highest poverty rate in Canada? by Iglika Ivanova; BC government to blame for looming BC Hydro rate increases by Marvin Shaffer; Water withdrawal stats run dry by Ben ParfittInvestor alert: TSX over-valued due to a “carbon bubble” by Marc Lee