"EDMONTON - Alberta's new health care bill has angered nurses and opposition members who say it leaves too many questions unanswered, but the province's premier says it will protect public health care.

The bill, the first of its kind in Canada, got a first reading Thursday, as protesters shouted outside the legislature.

Premier Ralph Klein called the bill "groundbreaking" legislation that will ease the overload on the public health system.

The Heath Protection Act, or Bill 11, will allow private clinics to offer some of the same services as public hospitals, such as allowing patients to stay overnight for surgery. These services would be funded by medicare.

Opponents say it doesn't spell out how the government will police the new private operators.

It also doesn't mention whether there would be a limit on the number of days a patient could stay in a private facility. And it doesn't spell out specific criteria that would convince the health minister to grant a licence, or revoke it.

The bill specifically bans private hospitals, defined as facilities with emergency services and a wide range of diagnostic equipment.

It also bans for-profit clinics from performing major surgeries, but allows them to do an unlimited number of minor ones.

Klein told a news conference that this was a "cost-effective" plan for delivery of health care, but declined to outline the financial advantages for taxpayers.

Liberal leader Nancy MacBeth calls The Healthcare Protection Act a "Trojan Horse," saying there's no way to enforce the queue jumping ban, and it and will lead to a system where the rich get better care than the poor.

"I think Albertans should throw the bill in the recycle bin," MacBeth said, "because it's going to set up private, for-profit hospitals in this province."

The list of operations that each facility would be allowed to do will be determined by the College of Physicians and Surgeons. Christine Burdett, of The Friends of Medicare, says that's a clear conflict of interest.

"Many of the doctors who sit on that body could profit personally from expanded privatization," she said. "It's like the fox in the henhouse."

Burdett also said, "the only thing this bill prevents a private hospital from doing is from providing emergency services? because it's not profitable."

Premier Ralph Klein says this new hybrid system would not violate the Canada Health Act, and he's sending a copy of the bill to the federal health minister to see what Ottawa says.

Federal Health Minister Allan Rock hasn't commented on the bill yet, and says he won't until his department looks at it.

The Alberta government plans to launch a massive advertising campaign to drum up public support for the bill. A newsletter will be mailed to every household in the province, and a Web site has already been unveiled."