Roy Romanow

Representatives from local agencies with health-care ties met Thursday morning to hear the 47 recommendations of Romanow's health commission report.

"I'm really pleased. I'm really excited. He did listen to us," said Barbara Saunders, president of the NWT Status of Woman's Council.

Some of the concerns acknowledged in the report included increased funding from the federal government to 25 per cent of health-care costs, additional funding for home-care programs, and more funding for remote and rural areas.

The most significant point made by Romanow was that Canadians want an open, public system and privatization is not a positive solution to Canada's health-care problems.

"We've been there as a society before. They are old solutions.

"They didn't work then and they will not work today," Romanow said during a live broadcast.

It was a point that everyone in the room appreciated.

"What I'm most excited about is we're not going back to an outdated model and that the people promoting for-profit (health care is) wrong," said Suzette Montreuil, president of Union of Northern Workers Local 11.

Jean-Francois Des Lauriers, regional executive vice-president of the Public Service Alliance of Canada, added the report will go a long way to returning Canada to a fully funded public system.

"That is what Canadians want," he said.

Sylvia Stard, president of the NWT Registered Nurses Association, said she is delighted that the report will begin to address Northern issues.

"Our voice has finally been heard," she said.

"It's so encouraging to see Romanow has made rural and remote areas one of the cornerstones of his report to deal with the unequal distribution of the health-care system in the country."

Dr. Jim Corkal, president of the Yellowknife Health and Social Services Medical Association, was also pleased with the call to allocate $1.5 billion to remote and rural health care.

"I don't know how it will be allocated, or how much will come up here, but if it works out to something then it will make a difference," he said.