Ian Jones PA emeritus 🇨🇦🇺🇦

UCP OBSTRUCTS ACCESS TO SEXUAL HEALTH AND EDUCATION The UCP has instructed Alberta Health Services (AHS) to delete social media accounts that provide sexual health education. AHS affiliates such as Teaching Sexual Health can no longer be found on X (previously known as Twitter), under the UCP’s instruction. The account had last shared information on consent before it was deleted entirely. “The UCP can’t stop interfering with access to women’s healthcare and critical health information, which includes sexual health,” says Julia Hayter, Alberta NDP MLA for Calgary-Edgemont and Status of Women Critic.  “Sharing accurate, science-based sexual health information on social media platforms promotes important sexual health awareness for parents and teachers, and provides critical information for young people about consent.  “First, the UCP made it more difficult for kids to learn about sexual health in schools and now they’re gatekeeping access to sexual health education online. This is all while opting out of a national pharmacare program which, among other benefits, would give women barrier-free access to contraception.” Today, on International Women’s Day, Hayter called on Danielle Smith and Adriana LaGrange to do the right thing for all girls and women in Albertan and support the national pharmacare program.
 The first part of the recently announced national pharmacare program includes coverage for birth control and diabetes medication but the UCP government plans to opt out of the program.
 “Access to free prescription contraception in Alberta would ensure that more women are in control of their own lives and their own economic future,“ said Julia Hayter Alberta NDP MLA for Calgary-Edgemont and Status of Women Critic. “We know that people who live in poverty are often forced to choose between buying food for their family and buying medication. We are currently in the worst affordability crisis in a century, and with the rising costs of rent and groceries, birth control should not be a luxury item.  “Universal access to free prescription contraception is good health policy, it’s good economic policy, and it’s absolutely the right thing to do.”