Dokumento detalye

2009-04-24

Gabrielle Giroday

Winnipeg Free Press

WINNIPEG — MEXICAN migrant workers could put Manitobans and themselves at risk of swine flu because of inadequate health insurance and fear of seeking medical help.
The warning came Tuesday from a Spanish­speaking union worker who said the migrants need better government-funded health coverage while in Canada. "We are in a situation where we can’t take chances... . This is very dangerous to the system," said Gustavo Mejicanos, who comes into contact with about 400 seasonal workers each year as co-ordinator of Portage la Prairie’s Agriculture Workers Alliance Centre.
He said the migrant workers come to Manitoba each year on temporary visas to make money for their families. Many are afraid to access health care here because of costs not covered by the private insurance they are required to get.
He appears to have uncovered a gaping hole in the province’s defence against the potential swine-flu pandemic.
Manitoba’s chief medical officer, Dr. Joel Kettner, said he doesn’t think the province is doing anything to address the issue of Mexican seasonal workers, but plans to look into it fur­ther.
A Manitoba government spokeswoman said Tuesday the province will discuss any possible gaps with the federal government.
Private health coverage for migrant workers is often organized by the farm’s owner, Mejica­nos said. In Saskatchewan, a provincial spokes­woman said seasonal workers under the same federal program are covered by provincial health care.
Mejicanos estimated there are currently 60 Mexican seasonal workers already in Manitoba, men aged 20 to 45 years. He said 15 to 20 of those workers arrived during the last month.
He said many seasonal workers work 12 to 16 hours a day on Manitoba farms and some suf­fer injuries. Many do not want to call attention to themselves for fear of losing their contracts, Mejicanos said.
"They’re afraid of losing their job and being sent back to Mexico," he said. He said one Mex­ican worker had a hernia last year and received a $500 bill for a hospital visit. That discouraged other workers from reporting health issues, he said. "They are afraid to report the problems because history proves they are not being well taken care of," Mejicanos said. "The solution is that they’re sent back to Mexico."
Meanwhile, public-health officials are trying to quell public fear as the viral outbreak con­tinues to spread across Canada.
Seven new cases of swine flu are confirmed in Canada — one in B.C., two in Alberta and four in Ontario, bringing the total number of cases to 13. All of the Canadians who fell ill were in Mex­ico or contracted the disease from someone else who had visited the Latin American country.
The Winnipeg-based National Microbiology Lab is helping to train Mexicans to start testing samples for the swine flu.
Labs in Alberta and B.C. are now doing their own tests on suspected cases to take some of the load off Winnipeg scientists.
Unlike other provinces, Manitoba is not com­menting about suspected cases of swine flu, but Kettner said any confirmed cases will be re­ported publicly.
He also said health officials are working around the clock to prepare for the situation, should things worsen. Kettner said he’s con­cerned that increasing public fear surrounding swine flu could spark panic among people and businesses. Manitobans who panic and report to an emergency room with a sniffle could slow down care for those who really need it, he said.
Kettner reminded Manitobans there are things they can do to avoid getting sick, includ­ing washing their hands, using hand sanitizer and coughing into a hankerchief or sleeve to contain the spread of germs.
"Now I think the challenge is to get the public to understand what’s going on, because my con­cern is that the public is a little more worried about this than they need to be," Kettner said.
On Tuesday, the Manitoba government sent letters to all schools in the province to remind them how to guard against communicable dis­eases

• 
  Migrant workers at risk: union (http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/Migrant-workers-at-risk-union.html)
  

Agriculture and horticulture workers

Policy analysis

Pampublikong Kamalayan

Alberta, México, Manitoba, and British Columbia

Ingles