Under pressure, the Government of BC has agreed not to impose stiff new penalties on doctors and private clinics helping thousands of BC patients receive timely care until after the court has ruled on our application for an injunction against these penalties. This means hundreds of procedures will not have to be cancelled as of October 1, which is excellent news for patients wondering if they would be thrust back into the limbo of growing waiting lists. It will also likely save the provincial health budget millions of dollars as it preserves … for now … the “escape valve” that these private clinics have provided suffering patients in BC for decades. If only the government recognized that the logic behind this temporary agreement should compel them to stop fighting BC’s private clinics and embrace their benefits for patients and the healthcare system.
Read more in the Vancouver Sun.