The current Sask government has made it a priority to undermine the public health care system by dramatically expanding private surgical clinics—and still failed to clear the surgeries backlog. Patients are also being sent to travel to Alberta for surgery.
The Sask government has awarded a $6 million contract to Canadian Surgical Solutions, a private-sector firm, to perform surgeries on Saskatchewan residents in Alberta. This forces patients to cover their own travel costs, effectively making the option available only to those who can afford it. By doing so, the government is reinforcing a two-tiered health care system, where access to care depends on wealth rather than need.
This is not what our grandparents fought for when they built Saskatchewan’s universal public health care system from scratch.
Recruitment and retention of health care staff has been a serious issue in the health care system since the pandemic. This is particularly true in rural areas of the province. But
the Sask government’s privatization plans will siphon staff away from hospitals, weakening the public system that most Saskatchewan residents rely on.
The new government must focus exclusively on strengthening the universal public health care system, including building capacity for surgeries and eventually eliminating the reliance on private clinics.
The province must also develop a robust staffing strategy to recruit and retain more health care workers. The strategy should address compensation and working conditions for health care workers, and particular attention to health care staffing in rural areas.
