The plan announced Thursday by an Ontario-based drugstore chain to add new stores in Alberta and renovate older ones does nothing to improve access to primary health care in this province.
So why was it touted by three cabinet ministers as if it were an earth-shaking development that would ease Alberta’s ongoing crisis in access to health care caused by, among other things, shortages of physicians and nurses, rampaging respiratory infections, and chaotic administrative changes to Alberta Health Services?
A statement published on the website of the regulatory college for Alberta’s pharmacists last fall explains that if pharmacists use the term “clinic” to describe their business, they must make it clear that it is not a medical clinic, and that no physicians offer services from the location.
“If a pharmacy team chooses to use the concept of ‘clinic’ when identifying or advertising their pharmacy, they must include the pharmacy’s name and differentiate their services from that of a medical clinic,” said the ACP statement, a sentence emphasized in boldface type.
The ACP statement explains that allowing pharmacies to pretend they are a species of medical clinic would require a change in the Pharmacy and Drug Regulation of the Pharmacy and Drug Act.
The statement goes on to note that pharmacies must choose the name under which they intend to operate and that name must be approved by the ACP. “The approved operating name must be used to support the public in knowing that the location is a pharmacy, what health services are being provided, that the services are being provided by pharmacists and pharmacy technicians (if applicable), and where they should expect to be able to access their health record of the services received.”
“The public must know, without any risk of confusion, that they are seeking pharmacy services from a pharmacy,” the ACP web page states unequivocally.
The fact this statement was published on the college’s website on Oct. 18, and also publicized on social media at that time, suggests the ACP was aware this marketing trend was coming to Alberta, and that the regulatory college was concerned about it. Indeed, at least one other drugstore chain has opened similar clinics in some of its stores.
The Oct. 18 statement concludes: “Whether a pharmacy team identifies its pharmacy as a ‘pharmacy clinic’ or not, the same care is expected to be provided to the public by any community pharmacy.” (Emphasis added in all quotations above.)
This final point is important too, since it means that despite the completely legitimate concerns expressed by experts about creeping privatization of health care and the potential for conflict of interest when sellers of medication can also prescribe it, nothing has changed at this time.
As a result, the statements by Premier Danielle Smith, Health Minister Adriana LaGrange, and Jobs, Economy and Trade Minister Matt Jones about how the “clinics” springing up in Shoppers Drug Mart pharmacies will improve access to health care for Albertans are at best meaningless and at worst intentionally deceptive.
The only marginal improvement in access that can be honestly claimed is Shoppers’ intention to open 44 new locations – and that assumes they don’t plan to close old ones.
In addition, nothing can be done to give the ministers’ misleading claims any meaning without either regulatory change by the government or an effort by the corporation to find physicians who are willing to work in its Alberta drugstores. The problem with the latter idea, of course, is the same as that faced by any other health clinic looking for new medical practitioners in Alberta: There aren’t enough!
It remains unclear who organized the news conference. Did the idea for the presser originate with the government, Shoppers, or Invest Alberta?
If it wasn’t organized by the government, and the government as stated by Mr. Jones made no contribution to Shoppers’ $77-million budget for the new stores and renovations, why did the UCP think it was worth sending three cabinet ministers to the event?
If it was organized by either the government or its Crown corporation, why wasn’t that made clear?
It is interesting to speculate on the purpose of the on-location dog and pony show.
Presumably it was put together so that the government could claim to be doing something to improve access to health care at a time most of its health policy initiatives seem to be making things worse.
But was it also intended to distract from the embarrassment of the premier’s obsequious performance Wednesday at Tucker Carlson’s White Fragility Tour?
According to a report filed to the provincial lobbyist registry in late December, five lobbyists from Wellington Advocacy Inc. lobbied various Alberta government and agency officials “to discuss Albertas (sic) long-term economic development and to share details and raise awareness of the services offered by Shoppers Drug Mart and Loblaw Companies Limited,” as well as “the federal government’s recently proposed National Pharmacare program.”
The team of lobbyists was made up of former Jason Kenney staffers Nick Koolsbergen, Clancy Bouwman, and Peter Csillag; Leah Ward, a former communications director to retiring Alberta Opposition Leader Rachel Notley; and Trish Rinneard, a former advisor to the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party.
Typical conservative bs. She lies like she breathes.
Maureen Heon: Lying is something Danielle Smith does so well. She lies so much that she believes what she says is the truth. Unfortunately, there are people who fell for her lies, and look at the big mess we are in because of it.
Yes, and aided and abetted by former AB NDP operatives. What a disappointment, but it does explain some of the more “Crackpot realism” choices the Notley NDP made.
Caron: Perhaps the different candidates to lead the NDP will have differing opinions on this kind of thing, which can be regulated in the interests of the public good. Might be worth keeping an eye on. People have to work, though, even NDP apparatchiks. DJC
Are these NDP apparatchiks so devoid of skills they see such employment as their only alternative? Given their stewardship of the last mandate and electoral campaign of the NDP, perhaps this is so. Are they so narcissistic they think the other side wants them for their intelligence? Or, are they so arrogant that they do not realize they are lending legitimacy to some rather unsavory policies? Do they think they can simply float above the consequences? Have they no sense of the damage to public trust in institutions they are inflicting? They have made themselves complicit with the Tucker Carlsons of this world and if history is any guide, will be held in contempt by both sides.
You do have to wonder how many staffers in roles like that are true believers, and how many are mercenary guns for hire that will work for anybody…
Apparently some UCP politicians are involved in misleading hype. Shocking!
Even at the best of times, Smith’s relationship with the truth can be described as tenuous and ambivalent. No doubt, there is some concern by the UCP not being seen to be doing much about improving health care. A better government would have set about taking action. However it easier to give the appearance of action and if the UCP learned any lesson from our spring election, it is you can fool enough people some of the time. So here we are. Of course no new real doctors will be hired or hospital beds added as a result of this PR event.
Besides they had more pressing things, in their opinion, to focus their real attention on at the time – that event with Tucker Carlson.
And which other Province has done a better job with their Health care crisis???? We always blame our Premier..give her a chance to start the project..which no other Premier, even Notley, has tried or accomplished…not an easy task.
Shirley: Danielle’s already doing it. She fired the entire board of Alberta Health Services and replaced them with one guy—then, 90 days later, he announced health care was “fixed.” Remember?
Danielle has started to break up AHS into four new corporations—they will not be Crown corporations, I bet—which means four new sets of CEOs, executive vice presidents, four new boards of directors with four new chairmen. Explain to me how this will leave more money to hire doctors and nurses.
There’s supposed to be a new board to coordinate activities among the four new health corporations; another set of executives with all the usual hangers-on. How will that be better than AHS, which had all the same functions in one organization, not four?
As for Notley and the NDP: please check the web sites of two books by political scientists (and others) at the University of Calgary.
Orange Chinook: Politics in the New Alberta https://press.ucalgary.ca/books/9781773850252/
Blue Storm: The Rise and Fall of Jason Kenney https://press.ucalgary.ca/books/9781773854168/
Please note that in the first book, there is NO CHAPTER ON HEALTH CARE. Read the introduction of Blue Storm, “Health Care, Education and Public Sector Policies,” to find out why.
All of them ?
What do you, not read the news ? Give her a start to what !? The first thing she did was pull the pin and fire a grenade into the already beleaguered health care system, struggling from its previous overseer, who was, correcting you here; JASON KENNEY, not Rachel Notley, who is the leader of the opposition. (The largest in alberta history)
What has she done to improve anything other than attacking the people you believe are your enemies.
I am disgusted
It looks pretty clear to me that the UCP want to usher in private for profit healthcare in Alberta, as their hero, Ralph Klein, had wanted to do. Ralph Klein made things worse, with all those layoffs of nurses, treating doctors like garbage, underfunding, and improperly maintaining of hospitals, and even getting them demolished, or closed down. Many people had their lives put in jeopardy, because of this. There were lawsuits, against the Alberta PCs, but we don’t know the settlement details, because they were kept secret. Nurses had to relocate out of Alberta, and they were reluctant to leave their family and friends behind. Imagine being a person who had to be involved with helping these nurses relocate? The UCP has treated doctors, nurses, other medical professionals, and hospital staff in Alberta very badly too. It’s also quite interesting to see Lyle Oberg, who fired Danielle Smith as a public school trustee, now being paid (an unknown amount) by Danielle Smith, to reorganize AHS. As I recall, he was in the Alberta PCs, as a cabinet minister, and then he had to sit as an independent MLA, because he knew where the skeletons in the closet were, and that irked the Alberta PCs. What was he alluding to? In British Columbia, he had some type of private for profit healthcare facility, but it failed. Ask anyone who has American relatives, or who has lived in America, how their healthcare system is. It certainly isn’t good. At the Tucker Carlson event, the attendees were definitely an easy to fool buch. Unfortunately, these people who were at those events, and were easily fooled, are the ones who gave Danielle Smith another chance. They clearly forgot that she faced defeat as the Wildrose party leader, along with the party, twice in a row. I recall reading about an individual who wasn’t happy with the Alberta PCs, and they were very disgusted with Ralph Klein. They said their family knew him for a long time, and that this person said he wasn’t good then. This person mentioned how Ralph Klein’s own parents had doubts about his venture into politics. Although this person had no aspirations of becoming a politician, they were asked to be an MLA in the Wildrose party, and reluctantly agreed. As soon as Danielle Smith started saying how wonderful Ralph Klein was, this person wisely backed off. These phony Conservatives and Reformers do not care about anybody but their rich friends. Anyone who disagrees with them, gets called nasty names, and has horrible insults hurled at them. This is apparent in newspaper comment sections. None of this makes any sense, but the unfortunate thing is that people have enabled it.
While well intended, don’t be fooled by the so called regulatory items from ACP. My guess that changes to the Legislation and regulations will be the first bills to appear in the sitting of the Legislature wiping out any controls of any sort. Remember, Danielle Smith is not a doctor but claims to know much more than any of them.
Good grief, what’s next? Are our cabinet ministers going to be parading around in front of our ER’s with sandwich boards advertising Shopper’s Drug Mart, “Come to NOT get medical care, but you can buy a lipstick?” Won’t Rexall get jealous? Or, do they have their own cabinet ministers, and Smith just goes with all of them?
Nick Koolsbergen might want to circulate a better photo…I thought it was a picture of some random incel who would have been in the Tucker Carlson dog and pony show audience. Sad to see a former NDPer as part of this nonsense, but then I guess a person has to eat (maybe comms people are more just guns for hire than party loyalists, I don’t know).
Expat: Mea culpa. He has a much nicer photo on Wellington’s page. I’m the blogger, though, and I love that one from his Kenney days. DJC
I thought it was extremely funny.
Sadly Albertans are so easy to fool they can treat us like morons without any problem. My B.C. Relatives aren’t that gullible and have proven over the years that they don’t let politicians kick them around. They certainly consider Albertans to be idiots they have seen the fools who have been elected here. You can bet they are laughing at how stupid Smith is. I have had dozens of these fools tell that I can’t be a true conservative if I don’t vote for them. Unlike them I’m not dumb enough to blindly support the word conservative and ignore who’s hiding behind it. To quote a lawyer friend “ Their is nothing dumber than a conservative bad mouthing Liberals while he is supporting one”. He knew Klein called himself a Liberal and they did it again with Jason Kenney just to prove how stupid they are.
Thanks for the information and insights!
It takes 3 months to see my doctor, to refill prescriptions for a condition I have had all my life. Now I just go to the pharmacy and they refill my medication with no need of a prescription. I go to my doctor once a year to get a check-up. This obviously frees up the doctors to help patients with new and serious problems. This was just announced and already we have articles like this one that say it will “do nothing”. Why don’t we give it a chance to see how it works, and if people want to use it.
Rick, this is NOT just announced. It has been in place since 2007, and I have personally been using it for several years for something similar to what you described, and I quite like it. The case can certainly be made that it is a good idea to remind Albertans that this option is out there, but it is definitely disingenuous to present it as something new that they have implemented.
There’s smoke and then there’s mirrors, these both seem to be at play here, along with the ever present UCP gaslights.
“Hey, presto! Here’s something we already had to solve a problem we created. (Without really doing anything substantive.)”
UCP going for the natural gullibility and stupidity that abounds!! Only proof offered is that propaganda has many avenues of delivery.
If there was one thing the UCP got right? I have not seen it!
So Galen and Doug Ford pulled the same stunt in Ontario. Shoppers Drug Mart is no different than any other pharmacy except they lobby provincial governments and are good at smoke and mirrors. Your article was well written. What is scary that Smith and LaGrange were 100 percent sucked in and have no clue about the regulations pharmacies are required to follow in Alberta. Also no clue about Health Canada regulations about importing drugs ( but you covered that story before).
We know Smith and LaGrange can be baited by any lobbyist. Qanon, Carlson, pastors, convoy criminals , Rebel bloggers, generic pharmaceutical companies in foreign countries, corporate pharmacy chains, corporate hockey owners and the list goes on. These are not intelligent discerning people surrounded by intelligent people who can do due diligence. Neither of them know a thing about Health Care.
Shoppers drug mart is part of the loblaws oligopoly; uh they’re quite different from a regular drug store.
Even Katz looks wistfully at the monopoly held by the Weston’s, price fixing ghouls that are personal friends of the house of Windsor.
Nice to see that the NDP is well-represented among the ranks of the apparatchik-to-lobbyist transitioners (https://breachmedia.ca/ndp-lobbyists/). It’s only a matter of representation, i.e. getting their share of the loot, right?
Stokes is in distinguished company now, joining O&G lobbyist Brad Lavigne (https://www.tiktok.com/@dogwood.bc/video/7307031932611611909), who maintains his NDP connection as V-P of the Douglas-Coldwell-Layton Foundation, which carries out its social democracy-as-nostalgia mission with a link to video of Tommy Douglas’ famous “Mouseland” speech (“Now if you think it strange that mice should elect a government made up of cats … “).
To get even with our doctors for giving her a bad time she is paying drugs stores ten times more for vaccinations they administer in their drug stores. In other words she is paying privatization style prices screwing taxpayers out of their money. Are you surprised?
Alan K. Spiller: I am not surprised at all. This is what we have with these phony Conservatives and Reformers. We certainly didn’t see this stupidity under Peter Lougheed. There are Albertans who are so easy to fool. Just because it has the name Conservative on it, it doesn’t mean they are. In British Columbia, and in Manitoba, the voters knew better. In Alberta, Saskatchewan, and in Ontario, I wonder if there is anyone who regretted giving Danielle Smith, Scott Moe and Doug Ford another term?
Wow. $77 M for a photo-op and a false pledge. That must be peak Queen Danielle.
Now that pharmacists are saying, ‘Hey, wait a minute…’ it looks like there’s another wrench thrown into the whole healthcare works. Of course, Danielle can COMMAND the pharmacists to become doctors, which is a pretty weird angle to take public health care from.
I suspect Tucker Carlson can make another appearance in Alberta and the seats can be packed with free tickets. Btw, the bragging talk of having Carson bringing his Canadian Invasion to Toronto has fizzled out. What with the news going around that the events in Calgary and Edmonton actually went bust, leaving the very strong possibility that public monies will have to be used to cover the losses. (Hello. War Room?) With all the scandals that have dogged Doug Ford of late, funding a Tucker Carlson event would not be helping.
I told you guys, no one cares about Tucker. You know why? Because of the price of groceries, housing, gasoline, utilities. The only people who give a shit what these grifters have to say are people angry / gullible enough to believe they are going to help, nearly everyone else sees right through them and is DESPAIRING for someone to come along who might actually do something for their material conditions. You think I care about Tucker having in event in Calgary or Edmonton if in white court or beaver lodge or Edson I can’t feed my kids or get them into see a doctor or find meaningful work that doesn’t take me away from home for weeks at a time ?
For what it’s worth, I don’t consider liberals (esp this day and age) to represent the left whatsoever, but if you all don’t let go of these culture war grievance and learn something about economics we ARE ALL DOOMED.
I’ve started keeping a time line of ideas and decisions by (the) UCP/Danielle Smith and so far the weight is all on the stupid side and this pharmacy idea is one more of them. I can only wonder how this is going to bite us in the backside like Ralph Klein’s ‘freeing the electrical industry to bring in investment’ idea did.
DJC…Well ,you called it on the parental rights issue, this should be “interesting “.
I guess she trying really hard to deflect from all the headlines about her “Real Premiers of Alberta ” lunches,
but what got my attention was the latest headline from the
Lethbridge News Now
” Anti-UCP signs posted to Premier Danielle Smith’s office.”
Bravo !!! the quiet voices have started to turn up the volume.
HI randi-lee. I had a look at the photo, and it seems most signs are saying “Hands off our CPP”—which I totally agree with. But I have to wonder how many brave souls were former, or maybe just doubtful, UCP supporters.
For those interested, check out the web site of Public Interest Alberta, where they have a program called “Save Our CPP.” https://www.pialberta.org/saveourcpp
PS: totally agree with your “Bravo!” comment.
Because the UCP has learned the liberals in this province are going to tear themselves to pieces over the perception of this law, while possibly at the same time antagonizing / alienating a huge number of parents as bigots by a virtue of where they live.
Obviously this will have to be settled by the courts, not voters. Is it disgusting ? Absolutely, did you miss the election ? Will doubling down on the same tactics from the election they just lost help the NDP? I find that unlikely.
Fwiw, the abandonment of religious voters in this province to this rabid fringe of hateful radicals is maybe the biggest challenge facing the NDP
today. Anyone who has read the beatitudes knows that the Christian faith in particular has little do with the goals of TBA, there is so little pushback on this I’ve never understood. Early Christians literally sold their property and pooled their resources to live communally and ensure the least of them was as well cared for as the “best” in many way the early Christians were the first socialists, sadly this has long been co-opted.
If the NDP insists on a centrist (cough neoliberal) approach to achieving power and believe it will help in solving any of the problems facing alberta (housing, health care, employment) they are not only naive, they are going to lose.
The world is rapidly changing, albertans seem insistent on dragging their heels, they will be left behind. Time won’t wait.
Bird: My own view, having been raised in the evangelical movement at a time it was still dominated by Christians, is that it has almost entirely ceased to be a branch of the Christian religion except for a few ceremonial aspects. Essentially, as you point out, evangelicalism has abandoned the message of Christ. How then can it be called Christian? DJC
This is a fair point, the evangelicalism I was raised in was rapidly consolidating its power base into what we see today, but having spent some time in post secondary religious education, I refuse to believe these whitewashed cisterns represent a totality within the Christian church, though it would appear they’ve seized most of the levers of power.
The point I was trying to make is that the often knee jerk reaction against religious faith by those who think of themselves as on the left is a bigger problem than evangelicals, James Dobson organization & the shady group the family largely seizing control
Of the evangelical movement and much of the church as a whole in North America.
There is for example a growing movement of “exVangelicals” (they actually refer to themselves as exies, like Swifties do) many of these people want to retain their religious faith, they’ve just left the broader movement. do modern “liberal / left” parties have a welcoming posture to these people, who may still hold “imperfect” opinions as far as liberal orthodoxy? or is it more likely they will feel alienated from both sides, and in many cases stop participating altogether?
This is what I’m talking about, I’m not talking about the religious rights rejection of common decency and humanity, I’m talking about the modern lefts abandonment of communities of faith.
Question can pharmacist write sick note for your employer Also regarding new MD. Some are choosing Botox Or cosmetic route. See. Articles. Fr the guardian Uk. And. Follow up UK article says around 33% new drs going into Botox cosmetic route And One dr. Dr Morison letter of 2022 Alberta Primary care closure. Leaving family practice after 40 yrs Knightsbridge clinic. All above paraphrasing as not computer savy enough to find articles again Note. Special coursework needed in Canada to do injectable’s Based on my understanding Health professionals like MD. Nurse practitioners Nurses dentists and pharmacists can do this in Alberta after correct education and training Some do this as a part time while still doing traditional medicine etc in hospital for example Benefits less stressful environment pleasant surroundings and usually happier patients or should we say clients signed old RN
Once a lobbyist, always a lobbyist. Danielle just can’t help herself. Ask her to boost a corporate plan, and she’s all-in. Unless, of course, the plan comes from the renewable-energy industry.
Considering how long it takes to organize a dog-and-pony show like this, and that the Alberta College of Pharmacy obviously knew something was going on last October, I suspect the “distraction factor” is a lucky coincidence for our so-illustrious premier and her sycophants.
Of course, the rage-fests in Calgary and Edmonton won’t make any difference to public opinion. Danielle’s fanboys lapped it up, as reported by Tim Caulfield in The Walrus:
https://thewalrus.ca/tucker-carlson-alberta/
The rest of us won’t be swayed either. This is a perfect example of the Republicanization of Canadian politics. One set of facts, two utterly opposite interpretations—both sides claiming their interpretation is the correct one.
Dave. You put your finger on it. Politics plays a small role. This is a nonpartisan managerial class of privileged public servants who leave their non-stressful jobs to then go lobby, often making more than most medical doctors in Canada working their asses off in the trenches.
Clearly from Nick’s photo, he appears to be getting a lot of free meals from the government trough. And Leah Ward (pronouns?) is just as bad yet supposedly an NDP staffer – you know, the guys that brought us Canada Medicare?
This is why experienced health care workers loath those unnamed overpaid BSc shills with some useless degree with no shop floor experience but creating changes to health care and thus causing harm without being held responsible.
Who thought it was a good idea to reorganize again (a third or fourth time – I can’t remember in all this confusion) while AHS burns – it wasn’t frontline doctors or nurses suggesting this. It is these upper middleclass narcistic ungrounded DINKs. Reporters need to open up the bowels of government to name and shame these problem children, who remain in the shadows.
Otherwise, more “Yes! Minister” and watching stupid naïve politicians being directed to bizarre schemes that they think will be a big political win that then backfires. Just look at Jason and Tyler. But it couldn’t have happened to a nicer bunch of useful idiots – Dumb and Dumber. Sorry, have to go – there is someone yelling at me on my driveway.
Tom: Ms. Ward, like Mr. Koolsbergen, is a former political staffer. DJC
PS. Wellington Advocacy’s main heading = “We help you win”. Obviously, this not a reference to health care workers or Albera’s patients.
Shoppers bought Pharmasave late last year 2023, maybe that’s the 44 “new” clinics” mentioned, esp in smaller communities. No competition has gotta help GALEN.
Gaurdineer….well, Thanks for a missing puzzle piece.
—So March 28-2023 (Global News)….
Shoppers Drug Mart ,steps away from medical cannabis with business shift.
—August 3-2023 MJ Biz Daily
Avicanna completes marijuana unit acquisition from Shoppers drug Mart.
— a little extra spending money for more take overs ? I mean acquisitions ,of course.
Just slightly off topic, but since I don’t get around much, our local Superstore has an inhouse Pharmacy and there’s a Shoppers a few minutes walk away(which already put in a ‘room’ for flu shots)What I’m wondering is if they are going to remodel around the inhouse Pharmacies in the stores that have them. Imho, it’s the only way that the $77m
makes sense. But then again Con-d’rump-math is not meant to be logical.
Watch for renovations.
The loblaws oligopoly is a crime against humanity.