Progressive Conservative leadership candidate Tony Wakeham (MHA for Stephenville-Port au Port) says it is inconceivable why the Furey Liberals have decided to restrict Nurse Practitioner access to only those who can afford to pay for health care out of their own pockets.
Wakeham was reacting to recent news that the Liberal government is not considering direct billing to the public health-care system for Nurse Practitioner visits. The health minister has just said: “We aren’t looking at that at this particular time.”
Wakeham said, “When a quarter of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians don’t have access to a primary health care provider and Nurse Practitioners are professionally licensed to help meet the demand, it is unbelievable that the Furey government has decided to move in this direction, restricting Nurse Practitioner access to only those people who can pay out of their own pockets.”
“It is all the more inconceivable that the Liberals are abandoning their position on improving access to primary care just five months after embarking on a campaign to recruit Nurse Practitioners to do just that. Why are they suddenly flip-flopping on giving people access to the primary health care they need, especially when they have just decided to cover the costs to access other providers – a shocking double standard? It makes no sense to refuse to cover Nurse Practitioner visits, especially after they just received extra federal health funding to help pay for it,” he said.
“Nurse Practitioners have a valuable role to play in primary health care in our province, both in the public and private systems. It is appalling that the Furey Liberals have turned their backs, not just on Nurse Practitioners, but also on their patients, who will now have to continue paying for care out of their own pockets.”
Wakeham said, “This is the right time for a leader who is truly committed to health care access. Any government I lead will do the right thing to improve health care access for people throughout our province, making sure health care is there when people NEED it – with EVERY person having access to a primary care provider, without an admission fee they can’t afford.”
