OTTAWA— Independent legal experts have confirmed that Alberta’s new private health care law violates the Canada Health Act. New Democrats are calling on the federal government to protect the health care every Canadian counts on.

“Our Medicare system is one of the defining promises of this country, but it is under threat like never before,” said Avi Lewis, NDP leader. “For too long, the federal government has looked the other way while conservative premiers chip away at our system. It must use its powers to uphold the Canada Health Act – and then properly fund health care so provinces can no longer use Ottawa as an excuse for more privatization.”

The legal review, commissioned by the Canadian Health Coalition, finds that the changes in what was Bill 11 would allow people to pay privately for faster access and let physicians prioritise higher-paying private patients, leaving everyone else to wait longer.

“New Democrats have been saying for months that Danielle Smith’s two-tier schemes break the law and will hurt people,” said Heather McPherson, MP for Edmonton Strathcona and NDP House Leader. “The Canada Health Act exists to protect a key promise: that every Canadian can get the care they need, based on need and not ability to pay. That promise has become part of our Canadian identity. Protecting it is one of the most basic jobs of the federal government.”

“Premiers across the country are watching what happens next,” said McPherson. “If this is allowed to stand, it opens the door to more privatisation, more gutting of Canadian healthcare, and longer waits for people in every province.”

“Canadians didn’t build a public healthcare system so it could be quietly replaced with a pay-to-skip-the-line model. What’s happening in Alberta crosses a line, and the federal government needs to enforce the Canada Health Act and stop it.” added Gord Johns, NDP Health critic and MP for Courtenay—Alberni