Trudeau brings in substandard pharmacare to stay in power
Latest Liberal-NDP scheme will ensure cutting edge medicines don’t come to Canada
Is pharmacare doomed to fail? Last week, Quebec announced that it would opt out of the Liberal-NDP plan for a national pharmacare program. This week, it was Alberta’s turn. Health Minister Adriana LaGrange blasted the lack of provincial consultation and accused the federal government of overstepping its jurisdiction.
Albertans based on issues they find politically palatable.” Instead of taking orders from Ottawa, Alberta will take the cash. “Give us the dollars,” LaGrange said. “Allow us to enhance the programs we actually have now, rather than create more bureaucracy.”
In response, NDP leader Jagmeet Singh attacked Quebec Premier François Legault and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith. “I’m not surprised at the Conservative governments that have cut investments in health care. These are the same premiers that, when you look at their province, they made massive cuts that hurt workers and patients.”
Ah, the C-word. Never mind that Legault’s government doesn’t go by that name: it’s a convenient excuse to attack the ideology, and by extension the federal Conservatives as well. Singh is eager to savour his pharmacare “victory” and position the NDP as the true alternative to the Tories. And since he has as much a chance of gaining seats in Quebec as he does in Alberta, bashing those two governments is a low-risk strategy.
But the NDP aren’t the only ones playing politics with this deal. The Liberals are as well, starting with the choice of contraceptive and diabetes medication as the first drugs to be covered.
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