Charter challenge against medicare not about improving patient access

Dr. Day’s challenge, if successful, would be Charter protection for billing practices that have been proven to actually undermine the public system.

Health Minister Jane Philpott might have a hard time defending Canadians' access to health care based on need, rather than wealth, if a Charter challenge in B.C. to allow doctors to provide quicker service for a fee is successful, writes Martha Jackman. The Hill Time photograph by Jake Wright

Opinion

BY MARTHA JACKMAN

September 19, 2016

OTTAWA—Since the inception of medicare in Canada, opinion polls in all parts of the country consistently show that a vast majority of Canadians believe in equal access to health care based on need, not ability to pay. Yet this is precisely what is at stake in the Charter challenge against medicar...

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