Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Can We Believe Kevin falcon?

Maybe I am just a simpleton, maybe I don`t understand finances, but, as Judge Judy always says...."If it doesn`t make sense it isn`t true"

What am I talking about? I am talking about the announcement today from Kevin Falcon....Falcon states that the BC Government is giving, no that`s wrong, he is asking Hospitals and private clinics to compete for $23.4 million additional per patient funding dollars....

That`s great news, or is it?....Because adding that money doesn`t make up for the funding cuts to the health budget in the first half of the year, but let`s put that aside for a moment, let`s do some simple math, just like the HST math that the BC Media can`t figure out, if there is a $2 billion dollar per year tax shift from business onto the backs of consumers, considering we have about 4 million residents in B.C.....that includes man, woman, children, seniors and politicians, simple math means that the HST will cost everyone about $500 dollars per year, the math doesn`t lie, so a family of 4 will be out roughly $2000 dollars per year...Simple math folks, I challenge any accountant to dispute those numbers!.....Back to the additional health funding numbers....

Falcon claims that with this additional funding($23.4 million dollars)....That 22,000 additional surgeries will be done and 14,000 more MRIs.....

Well maybe I am off base here but......

Private clinics charge about $800 dollars for a MRI....

Surgeries, let`s look at 22,000 thousand surgeries, if each surgery cost $1000 dollars, 22,000 surgeries would cost $22 million dollars!....If...If each surgery cost only 1 thousand dollars, how many surgeries cost $1000 dollars?.....

14,000 MRIs at $800 dollars each would eat up $11.2 million dollars, that would leave $12. 2 million dollars for 22,000 surgeries.....That would mean surgeries would have to cost but about $500 dollars each...Are we in India?...Noooo...

Don`t get me wrong, anymore money into health care is appreciated but....

"If it doesn`t make sense it isn`t true"

I am sure some surgeries and MRis will get done, but I would hazard to guess that the figures Falcon is spouting have been exaggerated by 3times or more. You can read the story/press release here

And you tell me, am I right, am I wrong.....

Anyway, as you know when Falcon was transportation minister he stated the evergreen line was to start construction last year, he said that on CKNW, has it happened? Nope...And I also nailed Kevin Falcon for lying about the Maquarie group being in charge of the sea to sky highway upgrade....
I questioned Falcon on the Sean Leslie about 2 years and asked Falcon if the MacQuarie group was in charge of the Sea to sky highway, Falcon said to me on air....

"Nope, Maquarie group is not involved with that project, well I am 99% sure that they are not involved with the project"....Snip

And 2 weeks after that he was on the Sean Leslie show again......I again questioned Falcon and straightened him out, after I nailed him cold on the radio he got angry and said....

"I oversee many projects and can`t remember all the companies involved in each project"snip

I laughed my face off, MacQuarie was leading the project, the Port Mann bridge debacle was unfolding, MacQuarie couldn`t raise any money for the port Mann bridge project.....And I even had a photo of Kevin Falcon at a photo-op at the Sea to sky highway standing next to the head guy from the MacQuarie group!....Yet Falcon couldn`t remember, oh he knew, but the Port Mann bridge and MacQuarie group were scrambling and Falcon didn`t want the public to know that MacQuarie group was involved with the sea to sky highway project, considering they couldn`t raise dollar 1 for the port Mann bridge but had been paid many many millions for that project, yet they had no money....

So...I personally have nailed the bird man over and over again lying and or in a state of dimensia, maybe dimensia runs in the BC Liberal crime family, the BC Rail trial is a prime example! Back to health care funding...

"If it doesn`t make sense it isn`t true"

The Straight Goods

Cheers-Eyes Wide Open

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I recently asked my orthopedic surgeon what it would cost to have my knee surgery (torn cartilage) done in the private clinic he also works out of. $3000 & HST. PLUS HST! 20 - 30 minute surgery.

MRI on my knee? $475. (Knees, ankles, arms can be done on a smaller machine and there is ONE place in Richmond that charges the $475.)

Hope those figures help a little.

Grant G said...

The numbers are helpful..The numbers don`t add up...22,000 surgeries and 14,000 mri for $23 million?...

I think not.

Cheers

islandcynic said...

Harper, Campbell, Falcon....they all hate public health care. Better to put it into the 'for profit' or corporate theiving system, so you and I can give all we have to save our lives.

Go F youself Falcon

Anonymous said...

I did a little digging this morning and found an article discussing improved efficiency at a Lower Mainland Hospital. " The program has managed to wring out efficiencies so that the per surgical case cost dropped to $12,000 from $13,296 at the same time as the hospital has performed 1,600 more cases per year — just by being smarter and more productive."
As ell isn't Falcon's announcement part of an April announcement that said the Province was kicking in 200 plus million into this new program. Only this week's announcement makes it sound ( typical Liberal trick ) like it's ANOTHER 23 mill.
When it comes to Private Health Care, I believe it should be mandatory for any elected OR public official earning over $150,000 a year. The concept would be that they must pay half and the system will pay the other half. At the same time, Private Clinics MUST be audited. They way I see it, if people like David Hahn can squeeze a million dollars a year from the public purse, then he & thousands others across this country can pay their own medical. After all they only way they got those huge salaries is through patronage or borderline criminal decisions.

Guy in Victoria

cherylb said...

I thought they didn't have any money.....I don't believe a word from any one of them.

Leah said...

Smart Cheryl - if we truly had a clue about how much money goes through their hands in sheer waste, and questionable business practices every single day - I doubt they'd be willing to live another moment in BC. They would know better.

Anonymous said...

We can't trust any of these people. Falcon only does as his master asks. Gordo the impaler, the drunk, the liar, the womanizer. ALL must be gone. Lets get the recalls happening, out they go!

Kam Lee

Crankypants said...

A simple calculation is to divide $23.4 million by 36,000 surgeries plus MRIs combined works out to $650 per procedure. This seems like a fairly low figure to me, even for day surgeries. It may be enough to cover 36,000 MRIs, but not much more.

This announcement is just another attempt to deflect people's attention from the HST and the pending recall campaigns.

Cam