REGINA - Opposition New Democrats are planning another emergency motion, this time aimed at the province’s virtual physician program.
The emergency motion is expected to be presented in the Assembly this afternoon by NDP Ethics and Democracy Critic Meara Conway. The motion would address Opposition concerns that the government was phasing out doctors on location in emergency rooms under this program, to be replaced with virtual care through webcams.
In speaking to reporters Wednesday morning, Conway blasted the “Sask Party’s reckless plan to replace real emergency doctors with webcams.”
“Under the Sask Party’s so-called virtual physician program, nearly 30 communities have seen their emergency rooms go virtual. That means no guarantee of a real doctor on site, just a screen and a call to HealthLine 811. The government has said in the past this is temporary, but we see no clear plan or timeline to restore in-person care. In fact, the program is being expanded to more and more emergency rooms as we speak. Let me be clear — webcams are not doctors, this is not a substitute for emergency situations.”
Conway also blasted Health Minister Jeremy Cockrill for saying during Question Period on Tuesday that he was “very proud of the expansion of this program.”
“He is trying to sell this as a win when this is a symptom of a red-lining health care system,” said Conway, who also pointed out the province had previously indicated this program was meant to be a temporary measure.
Whether Conway’s emergency motion will get anywhere remains to be seen, as the New Democrats have attempted numerous emergency motions this term which have ended up being refused unanimous consent by the government to get to the floor of the Assembly. The one notable exception was an emergency motion condemning Donald Trump’s tariffs, which ended up being totally rewritten by the Sask Party majority.
On Tuesday after Question Period, Minister Cockrill spoke to reporters about the virtual physician program, emphasizing it is meant to be temporary.
“Really it’s to support locations where we have a temporary disruption, we may not have a physician available to provide emergency services,” said Cockrill.
Cockrill said saying it’s been in effect since July 2023 through the Saskatchewan Health Authority, and that STARS has been offering it for over a decade in a few communities.
Through SHA, Cockrill said it has been used in 26 communities, but not on a continual basis. It’s been used when needed, he said.
“Obviously some communities with longer disruptions may be more continual usage, but that’s not the end goal. The end goal, again, is to recruit doctors. That’s why we have aggressive strategies through the health care recruitment agency to find physicians specifically in emergency medicine. But really it’s a great opportunity to stabilize services and have access closer to home.”
