How the tariff war could impact Canadians' physical health
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Global News
8 hours ago
- Global News
Tory MPs, health group call for investigation and overhaul of vaccine support program
Four Conservative MPs are calling for a Commons committee investigation into the Vaccine Injury Support Program (VISP), and a pivotal non-profit health foundation says the effort needs an urgent overhaul. Led by Dan Mazier, the Conservative health critic and deputy chairman of the Commons Health Committee, the group requested in a letter that Liberal MP and committee chairperson Hedy Fry convene for an emergency hearing. Fry did not respond to their request. 'This is more than mismanagement,' their letter read. 'It appears to be a blatant misuse of tax dollars. The Liberals handed out tens of millions of dollars to high priced consultants while the very Canadians this program was intended to help have been neglected.' The other Conservatives who signed the letter included Kitchener-area MP Dr. Matt Strauss, South Okanagan MP Helena Konanz, and Red Deer MP Burton Bailey. Story continues below advertisement A political aide to Hedy Fry said she was unavailable for an interview. 'Dr. Fry is spending time with her family currently where there are connectivity issues and unreliable reception. I've been having a hard time reaching her. As such, it seems she is not available to discuss,' Fry's political staffer replied in an email. The criticisms emerged this week in the wake of a five-month Global News investigation into the Liberal government's 2020 announcement it would create VISP and the Public Health Agency of Canada's decision to outsource its administration to the Ottawa consulting firm, Oxaro Inc., in 2021. Oxaro did not respond to requests for comment Thursday. The five-month Global News investigation that prompted the outcry revealed that: Oxaro has received $50.6 million in taxpayer money. $33.7 million has been spent on administrative costs, while injured Canadians received $16.9 million. Updated Health Canada figures released Thursday show the company has now received $54.1 million and spent $36.3 million on administration costs, with $18.1 million paid to injured Canadians PHAC and Oxaro underestimated the number of injury claims VISP would get, initially predicting 40 per year and then up to 400 valid claims annually. More than 3,317 applications have been filed — of those, more than 1,738 people await decisions on their claims Some injured applicants say they face a revolving door of unreachable VISP case managers and require online fundraising campaigns to survive. Others said their applications were unfairly rejected by doctors they've never spoken to or met. 2:48 Whistleblowers allege 'high school' workplace inside federal program In previous emails sent to Global News, Oxaro has said that the program processes, procedures and staffing (of VISP) were adapted to face the challenge of receiving substantially more applications than originally planned. Story continues below advertisement 'Oxaro and PHAC have been collaborating closely to evaluate how the program can remain agile to handle the workload on hand while respecting budget constraints,' it added. Get weekly health news Receive the latest medical news and health information delivered to you every Sunday. Sign up for weekly health newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Oxaro also said that its monthly invoices to the government include documents and details, which in turn PHAC reviews and approves prior to payment. In response to questions from Global News, Health Canada spokesperson Mark Johnson replied in an email that PHAC, 'continuously conducts analyses of the program to identify both shortfalls as well as opportunities to better support people in Canada who have experienced a serious and permanent injury following vaccination.' 3:02 Federal Vaccine Injury Support Program leaving some injured people waiting for years The Global News investigation also found that despite decades of calls for a vaccine injury support program, the federal government cobbled it together during the pandemic and underestimated the number of claims it would receive. Story continues below advertisement Darryl Bedford, president of the GBS-CIDP Foundation of Canada (GBS), is calling for an overhaul of the four-year old program, demanding it improve the speed of decision-making and support for the vaccine injured. 'We're very concerned. And we think that there really needs to be a close look or overhaul of this,' said Bedford, who runs the national registered charity that supports people with neurological disorders such as GBS. 'It doesn't feel like it's working to us.' View image in full screen Darryl Bedford, the President of the Guillain Barre Syndrome Foundation of Canada, discussed the VISP effort with Global News. Global News Bedford said liaison people and volunteers on the ground have told him that they don't feel VISP is 'consistent enough.' Several people who received COVID-19 vaccines developed serious adverse reactions that included GBS, which can cause paralysis, throwing their lives into crisis, according to a Health Canada database that reported adverse reaction events of special interest. Story continues below advertisement Global News uncovered allegations that Oxaro was unequipped to deliver fully on the program's mission, questions about why the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) chose this company over others, and internal documents that suggested poor planning from the start. Former Oxaro workers described a workplace that lacked the gravitas of a program meant to assist the seriously injured and chronically ill: office drinking, ping pong, slushies and Netflix streaming at desks. View image in full screen The VISP prepared this brochure to explain the process of applying and getting financial support to people injured by COVID-19 vaccines. Global News Bedford said those vaccine-injured people need help and rapid support. 'When you experience a sudden tragedy that rips your life apart, you need support within days or weeks. To have to wait months or years for a decision on financial help from the VISP is completely unacceptable,' he said. 'It doesn't feel like it's (VISP is) responsive enough,' he added. 'It doesn't feel like the primary goal is support.' Story continues below advertisement 'It feels like the majority of the money is going to the (program) administration, and it doesn't feel like there's an organized process for getting the information, making a decision and getting the money out the door,' Bedford added. 4:04 'Chaos' inside Federal Vaccine Injury Support Program Bedford revealed that members of the GBS Foundation were surprised and concerned when the Liberal government decided to outsource the program to Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton Consulting Inc., now named Oxaro Inc. 'We were concerned internally when Oxaro or the subsidiary of Grant Thornton was named because there are public and private entities that have experience processing claims. And these are organizations that Canadians would know and have established processes for managing cases and making decisions on cases,' Bedford added. 'It was a surprise to us because, you know, there are household names that you could think of that process health benefit claims.' Story continues below advertisement Global News reported that one of the unsuccessful bidders was Green Shield Canada, a national health-claims benefit manager with more than 60 years in the business. In its proposal to the government, Oxaro (at the time called RCGT Consulting Inc.), noted that its prior claims experience involved processing health insurance claims between 2012 and 2015 for a small regional insurer that became insolvent and entered a liquidation. It also runs a much smaller program for the government that hands out grants to the families of dead first reponders. PHAC said that a six-person committee that reviewed proposals from four companies 'unanimously' picked RCGT Consulting, over Green Shield and three companies. PHAC says it is reviewing Oxaro's five-year arrangement to administer VISP, which is up for renewal next year. A compliance audit was also launched last month after Global News started asking questions about Oxaro's management of claims. Want to contact us? Email or
National Observer
8 hours ago
- National Observer
Canada beyond Trump: Climate rages on as our greatest challenge
Long after the current US government has gone, the climate crisis will remain the greatest existential threat of our time. While it's no surprise the recent Canadian federal election was dominated by the immediacy of unprecedented US threats against us, the environment is critically intertwined with every major issue, ranging from Canadian sovereignty to the economy, jobs, housing and health. Whether we're talking about it or not, the climate crisis continues to escalate, affecting nearly every facet of our lives. Canadians and our new federal government must recognize that strong climate policies now will ultimately make or break our future, and that of our children. The climate crisis shortens lifespans, costing both lives and dollars. Health experts worldwide, ranging from the World Health Organization to the Canadian Public Health Association, recognize climate change as the greatest health challenge of the 21st century. Burning fossil fuels, including the potent so-called 'natural' gas, generates both carbon pollution that causes climate change and toxic air pollution associated with widespread human health harms. Air pollution is linked to roughly one in seven premature deaths in Canada, while burning fossil fuels is linked to one in five deaths worldwide. Climate change contributes to health harms through extreme weather and heat, food insecurity, proliferating infectious diseases and more. Both climate change and air pollution are associated with severe mental health harms, including depression and suicide, especially impacting our youth. Environmental impacts increase the burden of diseases requiring care, while also damaging our health care systems at massive financial cost. Together, these risks are making our health system entirely unsustainable. Climate change is already slowing Canada's economy, with costs in 2025 estimated at $25 billion. This cuts Canada's gross domestic product (GDP) growth in half, hurting every household in the country. As far back as 2016, the economic cost of premature deaths associated with air pollution across Canada was estimated at $114 billion annually. Over the next few decades, climate change is expected to trigger up to an additional $100 billion per year or more in health-related costs alone due to the impacts of heat, ground-level ozone, infectious diseases and more. Policies that get us off fossil fuels and fight climate change would effectively lower those costs, reduce illness and relieve pressure on the already overstretched Canadian health system, while keeping pace with global decarbonization trends. We would all benefit. Slashing billions from government services to fund massive military spending, while building pipelines and attempting to keep a fossil-fuel-based economy on life support, are not the way forward. They are simply archaic. Every dollar invested in climate action pays back approximately two dollars in health care savings alone — a doubled return on investment that more than pays for itself. Pollution pricing is one of the most effective — and yet least expensive — tools to slash both air pollution and carbon pollution that threaten our livable future. In the lead up to the federal election, we lost consumer-facing pollution pricing, which ranked as the fourth-most effective emissions-reduction policy in Canada. However, the still-standing industrial pollution pricing is Canada's single most important policy to drive down emissions by making the largest industrial polluters pay. The federal government must respect its election promise to protect industrial pollution pricing. We can't afford to drop the most powerful tool we have to protect our future. A strong Canadian climate policy will save lives and improve health, while keeping the cost of our healthcare system sustainable to help stabilize our economy. A current nationwide campaign calling for federal climate action and protection of industrial pollution pricing has already been endorsed by over 85 organizations and counting, including both the Canadian Medical Association and the Canadian Public Health Association. Recent polling shows 73 per cent of Canadians agree that walking away from pollution pricing betrays our kids and the majority are open to voting for a party defending pollution pricing. This mirrors results of a global study of 130,000 people, revealing 89 per cent want increased political action on climate worldwide. Climate change must be treated like the public health emergency that it is. We must hold the federal government accountable to lead Canada at this pivotal moment with sustainable, forward-thinking policies incorporating urgent climate action. Slashing polluting emissions will yield massive health and economic co-benefits, while keeping us competitive on the global stage. We are the final generation with the opportunity to choose a liveable future for ourselves and for our children. Dr. Mili Roy is a practicing physician and surgeon in the Greater Toronto area. She serves as Ontario Regional co-Chair of the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE).
CBC
9 hours ago
- CBC
The price of inadequate mental health care
A CBC News analysis estimates one woman's costs at over $800,000 and rising. In Ontario, two main camps are lobbying for change, with very different ideas on how to go about it.
