Vermilion-Lloydminster-Wainwright MLA Garth Rowswell told the Rotary Club of Lloydminster on Monday the minister of health and other officials will be in the city on July 19 to discuss outstanding health issues with invited guests. Geoff Lee Meridian Source
Alberta Health Minister Jason Copping is expected to take the pulse of provincial health care in Lloydminster during an invitational tour in the near future.
That’s the word from Vermilion-Lloydminster-Wainwright MLA Garth Rowswell, who broke the news as a guest speaker at the Rotary Club of Lloydminster’s lunch meeting on Monday.
“I just found out we are scheduled for the 19th,” said Rowswell.
Rowswell expects Copping to be joined by the AHS board chair and the CEO.
A spokesperson for AHS noted the minister is currently out of the country and couldn’t confirm the meeting schedule by the Source’s deadline on Wednesday.
Rowswell says Copping has conducted two such meetings in Lethbridge and Medicine Hat with 20 more places to visit, including Lloydminster.
“This is a brainstorming session, so we invite those people in and we talk about what we are doing good, what we have challenges with and what are the solutions for the challenges,” said Rowswell.
“We’re coming to listen to what we call internal stakeholders, which are people who work in the business of health and external which is government, chambers of commerce and health foundations.”
Rowswell expects the tours to wrap up by the end of September to be ready to pass any legislation in October to accomplish some of the goals that surface from the visits.
News of the tour is music to the ears of Paul Richer, chair of the Lloydminster and District Health Advisory Council, who was at the Rotary lunch.
“It’s exciting to see the Alberta health minister and a little team coming to Lloydminster as part of another provincial tour,” said Richer.
Everett Hindley, Saskatchewan’s minister of mental health and addictions, seniors and rural and remote health, toured local health care facilities supported by his government a couple of weeks ago.
“It’s nice to have both at the same time, having ministers hear things firsthand for the first time and really touring around and seeing what’s going on,” said Richer.
“I’m really excited to hear about it,” he said, adding he will likely be on the invitation list along with Mayor Gerald Aalbers and members of council.
Rowswell also brought Rotarians up to speed on a variety of committees he’s been a part of during his first three years as an MLA with the Standing Committee on Public Accounts being one of the most notable.
“That committee meets the most and at the end of the year, we review all the ministries,” he explained.
“It’s holding them to account in hindsight and the economic futures committee (Standing Committee on Alberta’s Economic Future) challenges them on what goes forward.”
Rowswell also noted he’s added health care and electricity costs to his three original priorities to help his UCP government cut red tape, balance the budget and counter the PR war against fossil fuels.
