Ambulance sounds alarm about the future of Medicare

Medicare campaigners visit St. Paul's Hospital 10:00 a.m. Wednesday An ambulance carrying an important message about the future of Medicare will be in Vancouver on Wednesday as part of a nine day province-wide tour. The ambulance is staffed by front-line health care workers and sports a visually striking paint job that calls attention to the threat privatization poses to our public Medicare system. The ambulance is one of three from across the country that will converge on Edmonton later this month when Ralph Klein is expected to introduce legislation that would legalize private hospitals. The ambulance visits St. Paul's Hospital at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, February 16 for a press conference to be held outside on Burrard Street. The health care workers will encourage citizens in B.C. communities to put pressure on federal politicians to make a dramatic and permanent boost in health care funding to the provinces in the upcoming federal budget. They're also calling for Ottawa to take whatever legislative actions are necessary to prevent Alberta premier Ralph Klein from legalizing private hospitals. The tour is sponsored by the Canadian Union of Public Employees — the ambulance will be staffed by members of the CUPE Local 873 — the Ambulance Paramedics of B.C. — and the Hospital Employees' Union — CUPE's B.C. Health Services Division.