SENIORS ARE A GROWING FORCE

by Ben Swankey

British Columbia has over half a million seniors today representing 12.9 percent of the population, and their numbers are growing. It is projected that by 2011 these figures will reach 699,000 and 14.9 percent.

Seniors participate in hundreds of groups. Many are in activity groups of some kind serving their particular needs and interests based in senior centres, community centres and churches. Many belong to senior ethnic groups.

Seniors have also established their own advocacy groups which lobby governments at all levels, federal, provincial, regional and municipal on issues of concern to them. Among these groups are:

B.C. Old Age Pensioners Organization (OAPO) with 8,000 members and 79 branches. Established in 1932 and registered in 1937 it is the oldest senior's organization in Canada.

B.C. Forum with 8,000 members composed of retired union members

Senior Citizens Association (SCA) with 7,600 members in 80 branches in the province

Council of Senior Citizen Organizations (COSCO), a coalition representing groups with a total of 24,000 members

Seniors Network B.C., a new coalition with 50,000 members formed in 1999. Its aim is to enable seniors to speak with one voice when lobbying governments. The above mentioned four groups, along with others, belong to this seniors network

Issues being taken up by these advocacy groups include health care, pensions, housing, home care, institutional care and leaky condominiums.

One of the most pressing issues facing seniors today is the preservation and expansion of our publicly funded system of health care. It faces many problems.

Ottawa, which originally shared costs of Medicare on a 50-50 basis with the provinces, now only pays 15 percent. Alberta has passed legislation to legalize private hospitals. Right now the World Trade Organization (WTO) is carrying on secret negotiations in Geneva, with Canada's participation, that would require countries like Canada to open up their health care system to privatization.

Our media, most of which is owned by one man (formerly Conrad Black, now Izzy Asper) is promoting two-tier medicine as a means of imposing the U.S. private-for-profit health system on Canadians.

With these developments in mind, Senior Network B.C. has decided to make a canvass of as many seniors as possible, organized and unorganized, to gain their views on how Medicare can be maintained, improved and expanded. When the canvass is completed and the views summarized they will be sent to all participating groups for discussion and amendment before being presented in the form of briefs to both the provincial and federal governments.

A kit with information on health issues together with suggested questions for discussion is being prepared and will be available to all interested groups. Speakers knowledgeable on health care issues can also be provided.

All senior groups and all seniors are invited and urged to participate in this grass-roots survey and join together to save Medicare.

For more information on senior groups and their activities please contact Elsie Dean, Secretary, Seniors Network, B.C. at (604) 294-5834 or fax (604) 294-5816.

Ben Swankey is a consultant with the B.C. Old Age Pensioners Organization, phone & fax (604) 433-8323