Newfoundland and Labrador premier replaces health minister amid doctor shortages
Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey announced Wednesday that he has moved the health minister who steered the province's pandemic response to a new portfolio.
The premier announced Wednesday that John Haggie, a physician who had been health minister since 2015, is taking over the education portfolio. Tom Osborne moves from education to health.
"Ministers Haggie and Osborne have been instrumental in navigating the province through the pandemic," Furey said in a press release. "(They've) supported our government's vision to strengthen our communities and improve service delivery for the benefit of all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians."
The move comes amid mounting health-care concerns in the province. The bustling Newfoundland town of Bonavista held a community meeting last week about its lack of doctors, as its emergency room faces intermittent closures this summer due to staffing shortages.
Mayor John Norman wrote a passionate post about the situation on social media last month, saying he was considering declaring a health-care state of emergency in his community.
Last month, the provincial medical association released figures showing that nearly a quarter of Newfoundland and Labrador residents are without a family doctor.
Like Haggie, Furey is a physician. Haggie is the former president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association and of the Canadian Medical Association.
Osborne was the province's health minister under former Progressive Conservative Premier Danny Williams from 2006 to 2007, as errors in breast cancer testing in the province were coming to light. That ultimately resulted in a sweeping public investigation called the Cameron Inquiry. He joined in the Liberals in 2013, and was appointed finance minister in 2017 by former premier Dwight Ball, for whom he oversaw tense negotiations with one of the largest public sector unions in the province.
In a news release Wednesday, the Opposition Progressive Conservatives said the change was welcome and should have happened long ago.
"After years of ignoring major issues, antagonizing health-care professionals, and failing to address our health-care crisis, the premier finally realizes something has to change," Tory leader David Brazil said. "I can only hope minister Osborne has learned from his past through the Cameron Inquiry and does the right thing to help the people of Newfoundland and Labrador access health care."
Wednesday's cabinet shuffle comes just weeks after a task force on health care established by Furey delivered its final report outlining sweeping recommendations for changes in the province's health system.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 6, 2022.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
DEVELOPING Live updates as Stormy Daniels testifies at Trump hush money trial
Adult film star Stormy Daniels will take the stand a second time Thursday as former U.S. president Donald Trump’s hush money case continues in Manhattan. Follow live updates here.
NEW Why these immigrants to Canada say they're thinking about leaving, or have already moved on
For some immigrants, their dreams of permanently settling in Canada have taken an unexpected twist.
Here are the ultraprocessed foods you most need to avoid, according to a 30-year study
Studies have shown that ultraprocessed foods can have a detrimental impact on health. But 30 years of research show they don’t all have the same impact.
NEW Capital gains tax change 'shortsighted' and 'sows division' business groups tell Freeland
Forging ahead with increasing Canada's capital gains inclusion rate 'sows division,' and is a 'shortsighted' way to improve the deficit, business groups are warning Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland.
Ontario man frustrated after $3,500 paving job leaves driveway in shambles
An Ontario man considering having his driveway paved received a quote from a company for $7,000, but then, another paver in the neighbourhood knocked on his door and offered half that rate.
RateMDs violates privacy of health professionals, class-action lawsuit claims
A lawsuit against RateMDs has been given the go-ahead by a B.C. Supreme Court judge who found the claim that the website violates the privacy rights of medical professionals is not 'bound to fail.'
Defence attacks Stormy Daniels' credibility as she returns to the stand in Trump's hush money trial
Stormy Daniels will return to the witness stand Thursday in Donald Trump's hush money trial as the defence tries to undermine the credibility of the porn actor's salacious testimony about their alleged sexual encounter and the money she was paid to keep quiet.
With contactless screening tech, this Toronto startup hopes to catch breast cancer early — and save lives
Amid evidence of rising breast cancer rates among young women in Canada, one Toronto startup is offering a contactless and radiation-free device that can help doctors identify suspicious changes in breast tissue. The company, Linda Lifetech, says this can lead to earlier detection of breast cancer.
Tornadoes tear through southeastern U.S. as storms leave 3 dead
Forecasters warned a wave of dangerous storms in the U.S. could wash over parts of the South early Thursday, a day after severe weather with damaging tornadoes and large hail killed at least three people in the region.