On Wednesday, Health Min Copping "addressed the speculation" about funding cuts to Rapid Test distribution. He said compensation was "changed" from $5/test to $60/case.
Suspicious of the change in units, I looked into it.
Compensation has been cut from $5/test to $0.093/test.
If you're going to lead off weekly #COVID19AB theatre to say "rumours are not correct", then your clarification had better not be deceptive.
This would be the Labour Min saying Alberta's minimum wage has been "changed" from $15/hr to $500/month.
This compensation cut to pharmacists was announced in a PDF dated 3 March 2022, effective 7 March.
Goodbye $5/test dispensing fee.
Hello flat $60/case (for eg. 650 BTNX) the pharmacist has to apply for, to cover shipping directly billed by distributor.
Dispensing fees are max $12.15 until 31 March 2022 (watch for that to get cut) so $5/test *might* have been OK given there's no pill bottle to provide, label or receipt to print.
But the pharmacist still has to give you advice on how to use the test.
In Jan, Premier & Health Min repeatedly lied the holdup in Rapid Tests (👇 expensive failure to beat free tests from the feds) was due to Health Canada not approving enough.
In reality, they tied AHS hands by forcing it to bid against federal contracts.
I was going to tweet about my early dinner tonight at Palomino (cliché food pics) but just got hit with wall of SWEET sound when I went downstairs to use the washroom, and opened the steel door to basement concert hall.
WOW.
This is "Olde Ghosts" warming up - in this program.
I am a nerdy 58-yr-old engineer who surprises people with 2 unexpected traits: a love for good metal, and endless jokes.
On the latter, I am like Leslie Nielsen who could easily get even people braced for his hidden fart accordion to crack up. But I'm not using one....yet.👺
With metal, I was raised with Indian music my parents played, like the Pakeezah soundtrack, until the cassette literally broke.
This is one of the songs from that movie. It builds until Meena Kumari (Indian's Marilyn) dances with those 2 😍 backups.
I’ve been eating a lot of rich, flavourful food recently, and I went from a salmon/capers omelet at OEB to the passcode protected washroom in food court at Fifth Avenue Place. Took a massive, relaxed dump.
Laughing as I type.
So I’m washing my hands - even had the foresight to take a restaurant napkin to dry my hands and use on the door lever to exit (trust me on this) and a distinguished gentlemen t about 60 walks in.
And visibly buckles, and groans.
I’m trying not to laugh out loud.
I step out of washroom and all of this is hitting me as I walk slowly to exit escalator, down to a bench on 5 Ave, where I am typing this now.
I’m almost crying not to burst out laughing.
And the Punjabi woman security guard sweetly asks me “Are you OK?”
🧵 Alberta's Reigning Queen of deceptive cherry-picked public health stats, Health Min LaGrange, was back at it Monday, this time over measles immunization.
Bonus Topic: Where is the source for the widespread claim that airborne measles is only infectious up to two (2) hours?
@TheBreakdownAB @JMeddings @PfParks @LukaszukAB @JenLeeCBC @GosiaGasperoPhD @Mark_Ungrin @dupuisj @DrFiliatrault @TimmCTV Let me provide the links for the above two graphics:
@TheBreakdownAB @JMeddings @PfParks @LukaszukAB @JenLeeCBC @GosiaGasperoPhD @Mark_Ungrin @dupuisj @DrFiliatrault @TimmCTV On the deceptive, cherry-picked measles immunization stats, LaGrange said "Since March 16, there has been a 67% increase in comparison to last year."
The VP who oversees the restaurant was not on, but I left my business card.
My @Hyatt loyalty card, which shows zero as it has not updated for my purchases since February, when my car died, and I found walking there convenient. High prices, but matching food & service (!)
@Hyatt Now, I don’t care about my points, as I will never visit @HyattCalgary again, for any reason.
I won’t spend much time with the VP if he or she calls me. This is their problem to solve, not mine. I’ll get nothing from it either way - I’m gone.
Dear @CalgaryPolice and other smart people. I'm looking for 2 things:
• video of press conference and written response by Chief @neufeld_mark to Dreeshen's stupid announcement early Dec 2024
• GoA policy & evidence to get sites approved for photo radar
@CalgaryPolice @neufeld_mark I didn't know until now of this formal 12-month pilot while looking for more information related to my witnessing a cop nearly killed on Centre Street @ Samis Road on Sat night by a speeder who pulled over, then zoomed away.
@CalgaryPolice @neufeld_mark @reportrix @MBellefontaine I always knew Dreeshen's announcement, served in a "No Cash Cow" BBQ apron with Beef on a Bun for reporters, was colossally stupid.
I learned it kicked in on 1 April.
Will talk on record about my direct personal experience from this Saturday night.