Fraser Health fat-cats nickel-and-dime wheelchair-bound seniors

Not sure which is the more outrageous story in British Columbia this week. 
Abbotsford Mayor Bruce Banman and city manager George Murray have apologized profusely and deny they were using chicken poop as a weapon against the homeless. Local advocates for the homeless beg to differ.
The Fraser Health $25-a-month wheelchair charge is a $300 a year tax on people with mobility problems who are in the waning years of their lives, who have already contributed to society and should not be burdened with more costs that they may not be able to afford.
Fraser Health’s Murray
Fraser Health argues that there are exemptions for those with disability benefits and waivers for those in hardship. Fraser Health operates with the blessing of the Ministry of Health, ultimately governed by Premier Christy Clark and the BC Liberals. 
So who are the people at Fraser Health and why do they really need to charge elderly patients $25 a month for their wheelchairs beginning in September? 
Dr. Nigel Murray is the president and CEO who was paid $384,660 and reimbursed $45,299 in expenses for the year ended March 31, 2012. Add it up and that’s $429,959, which is enough to pay the $25 wheelchair fee for 1,433 Fraser Health patients for a year.
Vice-president of corporate services integration Brian Woods was paid $298,584 and expensed $7,125.

Philip Barker, the vice-president informatics and transformation support, got $257,504 in wages and $23,398 in expenses. 

Marc Pelletier, the vice-president of operations and strategic planning, got $247,065 and $5,603 respectively. Peter Goldthorpe, vice-president Lower Mainland capital projects, real estate and facilities, was $234,360 and $4,454, respectively.
The nine members of the board of directors were paid a cumulative $151,125 and had $6,401 in expenses. (The $157,526 expenditure is the equivalent of wheelchair fees for 525 patients for a year.)

                                                remuneration  expenses
Chair David Mitchell $28,750      $967
Arvinder Bubber                  $16,500       $276
Robert Forrest                     $22,500 $2,119
Christopher Gardner              $7,625       $195
Gurpreet Gill                       $13,000       $885
Marlene Grinnell                  $18,250       $323
Darlene (Deanie) Kolybabi $14,750        $944
George McLeod                    $17,750       $692
Inde Sumal                          $12,000       —
2010goldrush.blogspot.com
News and views on Vancouver 2010 (and beyond) from Bob Mackin.

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