Private Clinic Says Patients Win Victory

VANCOUVER (CP) – The operator of a private health clinic says patients have won a victory now that his facility is working within the Canadian Health Act.

Dr. Mark Godley says his False Creek Urgent Care Centre will prompt other clinics to open in competition and that will mean more spaces for people needing care.

The Ministry of Health had threatened to get an injunction to shut the clinic down and to prosecute the operators.

But the two sides reached an agreement Friday and patients won’t have to pay for any services they receive there.

Godley says the clinic will still charge patients who want optional preventative services that are outside the Canada Health Act such as 3-D ultrasounds.

The clinic would have been the first of its kind in Canada to offer high-tech treatment to patients willing to pay.