EDMONTON — Today, after months of waiting, the Alberta government is finally supposed to receive an interim report from Justice Wyant’s investigation into the allegations of corruption and interference in Alberta’s health care procurement and contracting processes. The report was initially due on May 30, but instead the Deputy Minister of Justice, an unelected bureaucrat, was sent out to quietly announce a months-long delay in the report.
The government has not made any public comment about today’s interim report, and it is unclear if or when they plan to release the report or any information to the public.
“Regardless of what is in today’s report, the ongoing lack of respect for Albertans is completely unacceptable. It is increasingly clear that this government is not serious about transparency or accountability by how they continue to try to sweep this scandal under the rug,” said Chris Gallaway executive director of Friends of Medicare. “It is our public health care dollars that are being spent on these surgical contracts. Albertans deserve fulsome answers for how our money is being spent, which means an independent public inquiry.”
Since being elected, the government has increasingly spent substantial public health care dollars to subsidize the profits of private entities throughout our health care system. Their aggressive privatization agenda has included signing secretive contracts with for-profit health care providers to expand their role throughout health care and addictions care, as well as furtive steps to lay the groundwork for the potential privatization of Alberta hospitals.
Earlier today, a new article from the Globe and Mail revealed that a confidential investigative report shows “a consultant advising Alberta’s health authority on its use of private surgical centres simultaneously worked for a company vying for a contract to operate such a facility,” along with other concerning information.
“We need to ensure that patient care is the priority, not private profits. Yet, Albertans continue to be met with more questions than answers when it comes to the lucrative contracts that have privatized surgical delivery in Alberta over to for-profit corporations,” said Gallaway. “The only real solution to finally get to the bottom of these allegations remains a fully empowered and independent public inquiry, something Friends of Medicare and many others have been calling for, for months. At this point anything less is unacceptable.”
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