Nova Scotia NDP says “No” to Essential Services for Disabled

Tim McSorley — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 08:16:29 +0000

HALIFAX—Siphoning thousands of dollars from a special-needs program for the disabled while pumping tens of millions into a convention centre is a "betrayal" by Nova Scotia's New Democratic Party government, said many in attendance at a Halifax news conference on August 16.

People with disabilities and their advocates urged the government to cancel changes made on Aug. 8 to the Employment Support and Income Assistance regulations that cut essential health benefits to people living with disabilities.

"I rely on income assistance and have received special needs assistance for massage therapy to treat chronic pain and migraine headaches," April Keddy of Port Williams told the Halifax Media Co-op. She lives with a progressive genetic disorder.

"I need this therapy—it’s not a luxury. Without it I’m afraid I would end up in the hospital long-term," she told the news conference.

The change in regulations eliminates special-needs assistance for drugs and treatments not covered by the provincial Medical Services Insurance (MSI), such as massage therapy, psychological counseling and a range of alternative medications, said Dalhousie legal-aid lawyer Claire McNeil.

The government cuts, which affect fewer than 25 people, were made without notice, public consultation or input from health or disability rights groups, said McNeil.

A quick check of the health plan covering Nova Scotia MLAs and all employees of the provincial government reveals that all such treatments are recognized and covered for up to a total of $1,500 a year.

The government has said the changes are meant to clarify what is covered by law.

"They haven’t clarified the law, they’ve stripped people with disabilities of their rights by repealing laws that made it possible for those living in poverty to request services essential to maintain their health," McNeil said.

"This change undermines a human right that has been in place since national standards were put in place 45 years ago under the Canada Assistance Plan," she continued.

McNeil said the government cutback prevents provincial Department of Community Service caseworkers from using their discretion to accommodate special needs, and limits the caseworkers to a "cookie-cutter" approach with a narrow list of approved items.

"And the cuts won’t even save money," said Dr. Margaret Casey, chair of the board of directors at the North End Community Clinic.

"These cuts will create a gap in services which will increase demands on family physicians, pharmacare programs and emergency rooms, adding to the burden on the healthcare systems," Casey said.

"For individual patients living in poverty, it will mean no access to measures designed to alleviate pain and suffering," she explained.

Many attending the news conference expressed disgust that an NDP government they helped elect would take such a discriminatory and ill-advised approach.

Pamela Harrison said that, had these cuts been made three years ago, the audience of people protesting the cuts could have included many NDP MLAs and party officials. None were in attendance.

Another person wondered why the NDP government had millions of dollars for developers and business but were trying to save a pittance by hurting the disabled. "Are developers’ needs more special?" The province and Halifax Regional Municipality have each committed $56 million to have a convention centre built by Rank Inc. as part of a mixed-use $500-million project. The federal government recently added $51.4 million to the pot.

Jim Guild is retired from a staff rep. position with the NS Government and General Employees Union (NSGEU) and has been active of late with the Halifax Media Co-op.

This piece was originally published by the Halifax Media Co-op.

NS disability rights press conference

April Keddy

The "Trade" Agreement Ottawa and Nova Scotia Want Kept Secret

Martin Lukacs — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 09:06:28 +0000

Packed room hears Canada-Europe trade negotiations denounced

HALIFAX—A standing-room-only crowd packed a Halifax meeting room on a summer night to hear about a secret.

Two national speakers, Maude Barlow of the Council of Canadians and Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) President Paul Moist, provided a harrowing account of the Harper government's "trade" negotiations with Europe that they said will transfer decision-making power from local governments to multinational corporations.

The vehicle for this wholesale corporate power grab is the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), said the speakers.

Unlike the earlier Free Trade Agreement and North American Free Trade Agreement, CETA would reach into provincial and municipal policy-making and purchasing, Moist said. It would seriously threaten local job creation and "Buy-Local" policies; it would encourage privatization of Canada's drinking water and waste-water services (no matter what local citizens wanted); and it would cause prescription drug costs to skyrocket by at least $2.8 billion per year.

CETA is essentially a corporate bill of rights which puts companies and their profits first and the wishes of local citizens last, said Barlow. For example, European corporations could seek compensation for business lost as a result of any government regulation or policy. This includes banning a carcinogenic additive to gasoline (this has already happened under existing "trade" deals) or paying millions to a pulp and paper company that abandoned Newfoundland and Labrador.

"We have nothing against trading with Europe and much of our trade is now free or becoming free of tariffs," said Moist. "But this deal goes well beyond trade issues into interfering with how local people can make decisions about how to run their communities."

A Nova Scotia speaker, Mark Austin, Executive Director of the Rural and Coast Communities Network, added a number of concerns. "This deal has huge implications for Nova Scotia, particularly rural areas, yet we have heard nothing about it," Austin said. It would likely result in overfishing, and would threaten food sovereignty through attacks on agricultural policies such as farm marketing boards, he added.

And buy-local initiatives, like one Austin is involved with in Truro, could become impossible.

"While there might be small short-term gains in trade with Europe, you have to give up control of your long-term local economic prospects. It's like the Canucks playing in Boston—you can score one goal, but you have to give up five."

CUPE Nova Scotia President Danny Cavanagh, who chaired Tuesday's event, said CETA negotiations would resume in Brussels on July 10. Prime Minister Harper hopes to sign a completed deal by the end of the year. Premier Darrell Dexter and other provincial premiers, who also need to sign off on the deal, are part of Canada's little-publicized discussions.

Barlow said that while it may be unrealistic to expect a provincial government not to sign the agreement, she hopes that public pressure motivates premiers to drive a harder bargain and seek exemptions from the most damaging aspects of the currently proposed deal.

Despite the devastating potential impact, the speakers noted that the Nova Scotia government has done nothing to alert citizens of what is at stake. Moist said that the Nova Scotia and Manitoba governments have agreed to talk in private with CUPE and the Council of Canadians research staff about the negotiations, but no consultations with the general public are planned.

The European Parliament receives regular status reports in public on the CETA negotiations, Moist said. "Why can't Canadians get such reports?"

Dartmouth MP Robert Chisholm, the federal NDP trade critic, was at the meeting, as was Halifax NDP MP Megan Leslie. No provincial politicians attended.

"It's not too late to stop the deal," Barlow said.

The speaking event was part of a national campaign entitled, "Canadian communities are not for sale.” More information is available as part of a “CETA toolkit” at http://cupe.ca/ceta, or at www.canadians.org.

This article was originally published with the Halifax Media Co-op.

Jim Guild, of Halifax, recently retired from a staff rep. position with the NS Government and General Employees Union (NSGEU) and has been active of late with the Halifax Media Co-op.

Barlow CETA2

The Dominion - Jim Guild

Nova Scotia NDP says “No” to Essential Services for Disabled

The "Trade" Agreement Ottawa and Nova Scotia Want Kept Secret