On Monday, the Sask. Party began its daily public reporting of closed emergency rooms, identifying seven that were closed. On Tuesday, the number had increased to 10, including new closures in Biggar, Broadview, Hudson Bay, Outlook, Radville, Redvers and Wolseley.
As well, according to the Saskatchewan Health Agency’s own online reporting, the emergency room in Kipling has been closed since Friday, the emergency room in Kamsack has been on reduced hours dating back to November 27, 2023, and the emergency room in Wilkie has been closed since June 21, 2021.
“It’s clear the Sask. Party has no plan to reopen Wilkie’s emergency room,” said Keith Jorgenson, Saskatchewan NDP Associate Shadow Health Minister. “This public reporting of emergency room closures confirms what we’ve known for years — the Sask. Party is failing rural Saskatchewan; they’ve driven healthcare to dead-last in Canada and can’t be trusted to fix it.”
The Saskatchewan NDP has documented hundreds of emergency room closures in 2024 alone across dozens and dozens of rural communities. The Sask. Party government finally surrendered to public pressure to at least report emergency room closures just as the Official Opposition brought forward legislation requiring such updates.
“Reporting is one thing, actually fixing rural healthcare is a whole different matter,” Jorgenson said. “We see zero evidence that things are improving on the frontlines in our hospitals and we see damning new developments every day that indicate things have never been worse.
“Saskatchewan is the birthplace of Medicare and we don’t have to settle for this Sask. Party and its sorry excuse for delivering healthcare. We can change the government and get down to work to fix healthcare right across rural Saskatchewan.”
The Saskatchewan NDP is consulting and developing plans for big bold change in healthcare and people are welcome to provide input at YourCareYourSay.ca.
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