CKNW Editorial
for November 15, 2000

Today I’m following up on a story which I talked about yesterday which arose out of a comment by a listener the day before. The question raised by the listener was whether or not Prime Minister Chretien had received two tier health care by going to the United States for a cancer operation. I said at the time that I had never heard such a thing and assumed that the caller had Robert Bourassa in mind … listeners will recall that Mr Bourassa went to the US for treatment for skin cancer.

I now have it on good authority that Mr Chretien did in fact go outside Canada’s medicare system for a serious operation.

Now let me say at the outset that I am relying upon hearsay evidence. Short of interviewing Mr Chretien on the matter, I can only lay before you what amounts to an accusation with this addendum. If Mr Chretien denies what I am about to say either he or anyone authorized by him will have this same time tomorrow – or whenever is suitable – to set the record straight. This accusation is of critical importance because the Prime Minister is accusing Stockwell Day of wanting a two tier system for Canada and is stating, as boldly as he can that he and his party stand for one tier only. If it can be demonstrated that Mr Chretien, and colleagues, have themselves gone outside the system, they are drowned in hypocrisy and ought to be drummed out of the election.

Here is what I am told. For many years the Department of National Defence operated its own hospital and medical care system completely outside the Ontario Health Ministry … a private, one stop medical plan which until fairly recently was open only to the armed forces brass, the Prime Minister and his cabinet and senior bureaucrats. During the Mulroney years this was part of the many scandals associated with that administration and I well remember debating this issue with then Minister of Justice Kim Campbell. Ms Campbell stoutly defended this second tier on the basis that prime ministers and cabinet ministers were very busy people and needed service on call. I especially remember her saying "if I need a pap smear and my doctor is in Vancouver that could be fatal to my health." I well recall replying with the question as to why she didn’t simply get an Ottawa doctor and get into the same lineups ordinary people from Ottawa did. In any event there was a big stink about this issue and I’m told that the practice of permitting prime ministers and cabinet members from using this special big wigs health tier was stopped.

I must also say that I am informed that several members of Mr Chretien’s government also used this service in the past which, if true, in itself demonstrates breathtaking hypocrisy.

I am also informed that Mr Chretien himself had surgery done on a lung – serious surgery – at the National Defence Hospital and that by so doing he avoided all the unpleasant line-ups and wait lists that ordinary people under the Ontario medical system were subjected to. My question to the Prime Minister is this … is what I say about you having a serious operation outside the Ontario or Quebec medicare system – in a second tier - substantially correct?

If it is correct, the Prime Minister should make a complete breast of it and apologize to Mr Day and to the Canadian people.

If this is true we now have three of the four political leaders, all of whom have dumped on Mr Day for supporting private involvement in the healthcare system, themselves having used private care in preference to medicare.

So that I’m not misunderstood, I offer the Liberal Party the earliest opportunity to deny that Jean Chretien has bypassed medicare for private, VIP treatment and I will accompany that denial with an apology.

That editorial was accurate until a moment ago ... I can now tell you that my information and suspicions were correct. In 1991 Jean Chretien had serious surgery in the big wigs own second tier system in Ottawa. So there we have it ... the Prime Minister who is beating up on Stockwell Day for promoting a two tiered system himself used a private system for the elite only when he needed surgery.

No lineups in the Ontario or Quebec systems for our prime Minister ... no Prime Minister Jean Chretien when he needed treatment bypassed the Canadian medicare system and went to the National Defence Medical Center which was a healthcare system for the Ottawa elite only ... it was exclusive to Top military, political and bureaucratic levels only .. and got his treatment.

The prime minister is a phony plain and simple and ought to apologize forthwith to Mr Day and the Canadian public.