Political Action, Research Paper Example

Abstract

The 1962 strike by doctors in Saskatchewan, a reaction to the Canadian governmental introduction of Medicare, was a bold and unexpected disruption to the province, and one which would have global repercussions. That physicians would close their doors was, to the public and the media, a shocking event, and the action generated hostility, if not outrage. Nonetheless, the short-lived strike served to accomplish a positive end. The government was compelled to revise the Medicare procedures to comply with the physicians’ input, as should have been more effectively negotiated from the beginning. Moreover, the upheaval and its subsequent resolution provided a valuable lesson to Canada’s American neighbors, and was immensely helpful in outlining a United States process which would be free of such disputes.

Introduction: The Action

In 1962, doctors throughout Saskatchewan banded together and went on strike for twenty-three days. The action had a single purpose, that of coercing the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation of the province to overturn its decision to introduce medicare. The plan itself had been hotly debated since its proposal in 1959; from the start, the Saskatchewan College of Physicians and Surgeons (SCPS) vehemently opposed the bill: “As the starting date of the program was postponed to July 1962, the SCPS marshaled opposition to the plan and solidified its hard-line stance” (Maioni, 1998, p. 121).

The action itself, while prompted by several years of intense controversy, was both quick in coming and short-lived. In May of ’62, the SCPS, aware that efforts to prevent the Medicare program from going through had been ineffectual, agreed that all doctors concerned would shut down their practices as soon as the program legally went into effect; on that day of July 1^st, ninety percent of all Saskatchewan physicians closed their doors, and only the most rudimentary emergency services were available to the province.

This unprecedented act created shock waves felt globally. As an immediate measure, the government imported doctors from the United States and England, and clinics were established. The press, Canadian and otherwise, responded to the strike with outrage over the seeming dismissal of the traditionally held values of physicians. American doctors, concerned about the impending Medicare legislation in the U.S., looked to the scenario as a test case of sorts and gave support to their striking Canadian colleagues.

Within a couple of weeks, some SCPS doctors returned to work and mediation was strenuously undertaken. By the 23^rd of July, the strike was ended when amendments were added to the Medicare bill which provided the doctors with several key accommodations, including higher fees, the option to not participate, and a greater voice in the Medicare panel. Repercussions, nonetheless, remained long after the issue was resolved: “Patients resented their doctors’ desertion, while doctors objected to government involvement in medical care” (Larmour). Moreover, the strike would greatly influence how Medicare would be more easily incorporated into American society.

Impetus and Reaction

As radical as the doctors’ strike was, it is crucial to view it within the context of the times. Medicare anywhere was a new and startling concept, and one with disturbingly socialistic aspects to those practicing in that era: “Organized medicine in Saskatchewan portrayed public health insurance as communistic and a threat to freedom” (Boychuk, 2008, p. 121).  Most unacceptable to the SCPS was the relinquishing of their authority in medical affairs the bill would mandate: “The doctors were not fighting for the fundamental right to organize and bargain collectively, but rather over the power to control health care delivery in the province” (Warren, 2005, p. 159). For the first time in Western society, governmental rule was broaching a previously privatized trade, and one typically regarded as above such interference.

Not unexpectedly, the reaction to the strike came in the forms of astonishment and anger, both from the public and supporters of Medicare within the medical community. On an elementary level, the notion of a doctor closing his doors was, quite literally, unthinkable, and an outrage to the commonly perceived ideas of why a physician practices to begin with. Articles in leading newspapers vilified the Saskatchewan action as a monstrous betrayal of the physician’s calling. Conversely, the doctors themselves emphasized that their refusal to accept Medicare as then defined was a position taken to promote the public welfare in the long run.

The social immensity of the strike, nonetheless, was such that even its most adamant adherents could not long support it. Talks were quickly engaged upon, and with evident spirits of cooperation from both sides, if fueled by different motivations. Compromise was effected, the bill was amended, and the furor died down.

Aftermath and Consequences

The single most influential consequence of the SCPS strike of 1962 was, and remains, a tacit one: it proved how extraordinarily popular all Medicare programs would be to the people. As, again, the concept was a novel one, there was no history of success or societal investment in it. This very novelty, in fact, arguably encouraged the SCS in believing that opposition could succeed, as they were not demanding that their patients part from a trusted service. The innovative aspect of Medicare was, however, irrelevant, and the same restrictions it placed on the physicians were, for the people, powerful attractions.

Nor was this wholesale adoption of Medicare by the people limited to the Canadian conflict; as the American AMA and government had been intently watching the proceedings, it gained an insight into how Medicare – which was becoming an inevitability – could best and most smoothly be incorporated into U.S. practice. In taking on the trauma of opposing, the SCPS cleared the path for its neighbors.

On a more pragmatic level, the compromises reached in 1962 were not uniformly embraced, and by one faction in particular: “Many of the doctors were reportedly far from satisfied, feeling that their gains were not significant” (Lipset, 1971, p. 401). Nonetheless, the amendment permitting physician participation in Medicare structuring was a vital win. The doctors were not, after all, subjugated by the government, and their expertise in medical affairs then added to the program, through such a rebellious means, was a benefit to Medicare which may otherwise never have taken place. Ultimately, the disruptive and alarming strike of the Saskatchewan physicians served to enhance the structure of Canadian Medicare. In initially opposing it, the strike brought about the changes which would ensure the strength of the system.

References

Boychuk, G. W. (2008.) National Health Insurance in the United States and Canada: Race, Territory, and the Roots of Difference. Washington, D.C. : Georgetown University Press.

Larmour, J. “Saskatchewan Doctors Strike”. Retrieved from The Canadian Encyclopedia, Jan. 15,2011 http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfmPgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0007155

Lipset, S. M. (1971.) Agrarian Socialism: The Cooperative Commonwealth Federation in Saskatchewan: A Study in Political Sociology. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

Maioni, A. (1998.) Parting at the Crossroads: The Emergence of Health Insurance in the United States and Canada. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

Warren, J. (2005.) On the Side of the People: A History of Labour in Saskatchewan. Markham, ON, Canada: Coteau Books.