Albertans urged to add their names to Medicare Tree

Albertans urged to add their names to
Medicare Tree
Support for public health care has deep roots in Alberta, says Burdett

Gil McGowan, AFL Staff

The group Friends of Medicare has launched a new campaign aimed at demonstrating just how deeply rooted support for public health care is here in Alberta.

At a news conference in Edmonton, Friends of Medicare chairperson Christine Burdett unveiled a new public art project that her group is calling the "Medicare Tree."

"In the past, we’ve asked people to write, call or e-mail their MLAs with their concerns about the future of Medicare," said Burdett.

"Obviously these standard methods for contacting government officials are still important and still completely valid. But with our latest campaign we’re giving Albertans a new and more creative avenue for expressing themselves."

The Medicare Tree will have many branches, and on each branch there will be hundreds of thin copper leaves, each signed by an individual Albertan opposed to the spread of private, for-profit medicine.

Burdett said that interested Albertans can arrange to have their names or messages added to the Medicare Tree by calling Friends of Medicare at (780) 423-4581 or visiting their website at www.keepmedicarepublic.ca.

In addition to distributing the leaves on an individual basis, Friends of Medicare also took the tree on a province-wide tour, with stops in Calgary, Red Deer, Lethbridge, Medicine Hat and Grande Prairie.

"We’ve decided to launch the Medicare Tree campaign now because the next few months will be crucial in determining the future of Medicare – not just here in Alberta, but across the country," said Burdett.

At this point, the Friends of Medicare plan to continue collecting leaves throughout the fall and into the New Year. The finished tree or trees (depending on how many leaves are gathered) will be unveiled early in the spring.

"We think the Medicare Tree will be a powerful public symbol – one that will be visible, lasting and hard to ignore," concluded Burdett. "Our leaders can erase our phone messages; they can delete our e-mails and they can throw our letters in the trash. But if Albertans get on board with this project, it will be hard for the Ralph Klein’s of this world to ignore the Medicare Tree and the deep-rooted support for public health care that it represents."