I’m a big believer in the benefits of population health control, but are bans the proper means to an end?
Public health teams have many tools at their disposal, the biggest being education. From the time Canadians were sold on ParticipACTION and onward, social marketers have studied the best ways to induce people to lead healthier lives and avoid harmful practices. It’s not an exact science. It’s not an easy task. But the ultimate aims of improving population health, reducing health costs and ultimately paving a path for socio-economic gains, make it all worth it.
Regardless of his critics, the Premier’s heart is in the right place. You can’t fault him for wanting Ontarians to be safe and sound. But how do get there?
Premier McGuinty also isn’t the first politician to head down this path. Banning behaviours which may harm us is increasingly becoming popular across Canada and the United States. Remember Mayor Bloomberg and his ban on transfats in all New York eateries?
Our newest associate producer, Mark Brosens, did some digging today and came up with 15 bans the Liberals have proposed — some have passed, others are pending. We’ll air that list tonight.
We’ve also got a great slate of guests: Margarett Best, Ontario’s Minister of Health Promotion will join Steve, along with Toronto Sun columnist Christina Blizzard, who wrote today about the nanny state. I hope you can join us.
