Dateline: 06/26/03
The Canadian Medical Association (CMA) says Canada needs to direct $1.53 billion to public health so that it's prepared for another emergency like SARS.
In a submission to the National Advisory Committee on SARS and Public Health on June 25, 2003 the CMA made 10 specific recommendations:
- Create a new Canada Health Emergency Act to allow for quick response to public health threats and to coordinate with the provinces
- Establish a Canadian Office for Disease Surveillance and Control at arm's length from government to be the lead public health agency in Canada
- Appoint a Chief Public Health Officer for Canada to be the national voice for public health in Canada and to head up the Canadian Office for Disease Control. The Chief Public Health Officer would work with the provinces and territories to come up with a cross-Canada public health action plan.
- Establish a Canadian Centre for Excellence in Public Health at the Office for Disease Control to develop training programs and best practices
- Establish a Canadian Public Health Emergency Response Service to deploy health personnel in an emergency
- Track and report health expenditures through the Canadian Institute for Health Information
- Add $1 billion over 5 years to public health funding to provide surge capacity and improve coordination of federal, provincial and territorial, and municipal authorities
- Give the Canadian Institute for Health Information an immediate grant of $200 million to work with the Institute of Population and Public Health and the Institute of Infection and Immunity to expand public health research
- Make it mandatory for provinces and territories to report identified infectious diseases to the Chief Public Health Officer of Canada to ensure appropriate response
- Put $100 million now and $2 million a year for a system to improve the technical capability to communicate with front-line workers during an emergency.
