NDP leader David Eby said a re-elected provincial government would add 10 CT machines and eight MRI machines, including one for Eagle Ridge Hospital, while proposing a coordinated regional surgical waitlist.
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British Columbia election campaign messaging on health care continued Tuesday morning with an announcement from BC NDP leader David Eby, as party leaders contrasted their plans for hospital services and other public priorities.
Eby said the NDP would add 10 new CT scan machines and eight MRI machines in B.C., and he specified that one of the machines would be located at Eagle Ridge Hospital. He also proposed that a re-elected NDP government create a coordinated regional surgical waitlist that would let patients choose the shortest wait time to access the fastest available care.
BC Greens leader Emily Lowan outlined a health-care plan that includes safe nurse-to-patient ratios. Her proposals also include reviewing loan forgiveness and paid practicums for health-care students, and covering mental health care through the public system.
Lowan said in her remarks that “One in every $11 in this province is spent on government health care, yet people are getting sicker and conditions for workers are deteriorating as we all watch millions of dollars flow to private health care providers.” She added that the BC Green Party is the only party “vowing to end this creeping privatization of health care,” and said her party would keep public dollars focused on public care through delivering community health centres and cutting down on “bloated bureaucracy.”
Meanwhile, the BC Conservatives pivoted from the health-care theme raised on Monday to focus on safer streets if the party forms government. Interim leader Lorne Doerkson said a Conservative government would emphasize law and order, saying “By cracking down on visible street crime, we will send a message that in our communities, order absolutely matters and that law will be enforced.”
Doerkson said the Conservatives would end B.C.’s safe supply and harm-reduction programs and instead focus on cutting off the toxic drug supply while getting people into treatment. He said a Conservative government would commit to 1,000 new police officers, prosecutors and judges, and support staff to help relieve pressure on those roles.
He also said the party would provide funding, tools, and clear legal mandates for law enforcement and the judicial system to catch criminals and keep violent offenders off B.C.’s streets, while delivering “swift justice.”
The announcements come ahead of the halfway point of the campaign, with the provincial election scheduled for Oct. 24.
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