Claude Castonguay
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Claude Castonguay, CC , OQ , LL.D , FSA (born May 8, 1929) is a Canadian politician, educator and businessman.
Born in Québec, Quebec, the son of Émile Castonguay and Jeanne Gauvin, he studied at Université Laval and studied actuary science at the University of Manitoba.
He taught at Université Laval from 1951 until 1957. He was elected in the 1970 Quebec election to the National Assembly of Quebec in the riding of Louis-Hebert. He served as Minister of Health, Family and Social Welfare. He did not run in 1973. In 1978, he was the President-elect of the Canadian Institute of Actuaries. From 1982 until 1989, he was the chief executive officer of the Laurentian Group Corporation and president of the Laurentian Bank of Canada. From 1989 to 1990, he was the chairman of the Conference Board of Canada. He was the Chancellor of the Université de Montréal from 1986 until 1990.
He was appointed to the Senate, as a member of the Progressive Conservative caucus. He represented the senatorial division of Stadacona, Quebec, on September 23, 1990. He resigned on December 9, 1992.
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[edit] Castonguay-Nepveu Commission
During the 1960s, the Jean Lesage government mandated Castonguay to write a report about the state of health care which before the Quiet Revolution was still under jurisdiction of the Clergy. Castonguay then wrote the Castonguay-Nepveu (in collaboration with Gerard Nepveu) Commission on health care and social services. In his large report he recommended a new health insurance policy, a new health care network, as well as a new network of social service clinics now known as the CLSC. The plan was to give a broader access to health and psychology care for the Quebec population. Major changes were made following the recommendation most notably the hospitalisation and medication insurance.
[edit] The Castonguay task force on Quebec health care
In 2007, the minority Liberal government of Quebec appointed Castonguay to a closed-door committee examining the health-care system's finances. Castonguay is a long-serving advocate of greater privatization, user fees and private insurance.[1]
The Castonguay task force released in Februaury 2008 said Quebec residents should pay $25 for every visit to a doctor. The report also called for an increase of up to one percentage point in the Quebec sales tax to help pay for medicare. Castonguay said health care is growing 5.8 per cent a year as a share of the provincial budget, while total government spending increases 3.9 per cent annually.[2]
Most of the report was publicly dismissed by the government of the day.
[edit] Honours
- In 1974, he was made a Companion of the Order of Canada.
- In 1991, he was made an Officer of the National Order of Quebec.
- He has received Honorary Doctor of Laws from Bishop's University, McGill University, University of Toronto, University of Manitoba, Laurentian University, Concordia University, University of Western Ontario and York University.
[edit] References
- CLAUDE CASTONGUAY (in French). Gouvernement du Québec. Retrieved on April 8, 2005.
- Claude CASTONGUAY (in French). Assemblée nationale du Québec. Retrieved on April 8, 2005.
[edit] External links
| Parliament of Canada | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Martial Asselin |
Canadian senator for Stadacona senate division 1990-1992 |
Succeeded by Jean-Claude Rivest |
