St, John’s, N.L. (November 4, 2024) – As the fall sitting of the House of Assembly commenced, Progressive Conservative Leader Tony Wakeham and the PC Caucus grilled Premier Andrew Furey and the Liberal government over the worsening state of healthcare in Newfoundland and Labrador.

Wakeham and the PC Caucus highlighted many urgent issues, including restricted access to essential medical testing such as CT and MRI, the failure to staff family care teams, severe shortages in doctors and nurses, the inability to address the shortage of internists in Clarenville, and a deteriorating healthcare system in rural communities including the people of Labrador who are losing their lives waiting for medevacs.

"After nine years of a Liberal government, Newfoundlanders and Labradorians are facing some of the worst healthcare outcomes in the country," said Wakeham. "The Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association (NLMA) reports that 175,000 residents are now without a family doctor. In rural Newfoundland and Labrador, seeing a general practitioner at an emergency room has become a rarity."

"When the government can’t see what’s wrong, nothing will change unless the government is changed."

Wakeham criticized the Liberal government's response to the healthcare crisis: "The Liberal approach is failing. When we rank nearly last in the country, something isn't working. We need to take decisive action to fix our broken system. We can do better, and we will do better. Better starts now."

A PC government led by Tony Wakeham would call for a review of healthcare recruitment strategies in the province, with those entering a relevant program being offered a job on their way into their studies, not on their way out.