History of the Medical Reform Group: 1979 - 1996
Defending Medicare
The next few years saw a continuing struggle over the maintenance of our
health care system in which the MRG played a major role. In the spring
of 1982 the Ontario Medical Association (OMA) began a series of rotating
strikes to support their wage demands. The MRG issued a strong statement
of condemnation, and our position against the OMA was widely publicized.
In the summer of 1982 five MRG members met with the health minister, Larry
Grossman, and discussed our major positions regarding user fees, health
premiums, community health centres, and alternative reimbursement systems
for physicians. On Mr. Grossman's initiative, the provincial government
organized an Ontario Council of Health conference on health care in the
1980's held in April, 1983, to which a large number of groups were invited.
The MRG submitted a brief outlining our major positions, and three MRG members
attended and played an active role in the conference discussions. The College
of Physicians and Surgeons, in a widely publicized brief to the Council of
Health conference expressed support of user fees. In an equally publicized
rebuke, the MRG pointed out that while the College is mandated to defend
the public interest, user fees are contrary to this interest, and that the
College had acted undemocratically in not soliciting the views of its members
before taking its position.
1984 saw the MRG play a major role in debate over the Canada Health
Act. While feeling that the Act may not have gone far enough, the MRG
was supportive of its content. MRG members spoke at a number of educational
sessions sponsored by the Ontario Health Coalition, presented a submission
to the House of Commons health care committee, and countered the misleading
statements made by the OMA and the National Citizens Coalition concerning
the Canada Health Act. MRG members debated representatives of groups such
as the OMA and the Association of Independent Physicians in various public
forms and in the media, over the Canada Health Act and the economics of
health care in general.
Over this period other major MRG activities included major support
of pro- choice activists in Toronto, work that was led by Miriam Garfinkle
and Mimi Divinsky; submission of a brief to the Health Professions Review
committee emphasizing the need for greater public input in monitoring the
performance of the health professions which was prepared by Don Woodside,
Paul Rosenburg, and Clyde Hertzman; and submission of an intensively researched
brief prepared by Joel Lexchin and Bob Frankfurt to the Eastman Commission
on the pharmaceutical industry. This last brief called on the government
to abandon plans for legislation that would change the patent act in favour
of the multinational sector of the pharmaceutical industry and contrary
to the public interest. Joel subsequently published a book entitled "The
Real Pushers" examining the role of the pharmaceutical industry in Canada.
The MRG also presented a submission to a Canadian Senate committee that
examined health care issues not fully addressed by the Canada Health Act.
1984 also saw Ulli Deemer take over as executive secretary. Ulli was
responsible for a number of positive changes, most notably a major upgrading
of our newsletter which has since summarized important ongoing developments
in health care in Ontario. Since Ulli took over the quality of the newsletter
has been consistently outstanding and provided interesting reading for anyone
interested in both MRG activities or simply the health care scene in Ontario.
Ulli has also done an outstanding job on the organizational aspects of maintaining
the group which has provided the steering committee with the time and confidence
to continue to address major health issues.
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