Alberta Health Minister Adriana LaGrange and Seniors, Community, and Social Services Minister Jason Nixon were alerted to issues with Contentment Social Services (CSS) in January, according to emails obtained by the NDP through a Freedom of Information request. News of a patient receiving care in a Leduc motel from CSS broke in March. “Minister LaGrange and Minister Nixon knew that there were issues with Contentment Social Services at least two months prior, and they did nothing,” said Alberta NDP MLA Marie Renaud (St. Albert) in a Tuesday statement. “What happened to Mr. [Blair] Canniff and the dozen other individuals who were receiving care in a Travelodge did not need to happen.”.Reports surfaced from more Albertans about receiving motel medicine after Canniff’s story broke, showing a letter from CSS that did not outline the location patients would be going to was a motel but referred to it as a specialized housing program.Alberta NDP MLA Luanne Metz (Calgary-Varsity) said Canniff was not the only person who was left in a motel instead of being brought to a long-term care facility. “The letter given to patients did not indicate the location they will be discharged to was a motel,” said Metz. “Minister LaGrange and Minister Nixon were questioned heavily about how Contentment Social Services was vetted to be one of the approved Alberta Health Services providers, and neither Minister could answer.”Reporting on similar incidents used to be provided through the Protection for Persons in Care program. This reporting stopped in 2019. If Alberta cabinet ministers cannot handle the vetting of one service provider in the healthcare system or take accountability for their work, Renaud said they “should not be responsible for significant undertaking of an entire system recognition.”The Alberta government has introduced Bill 22 to change the healthcare system’s organization. Renaud concluded by saying Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has to pull Bill 22. “If Adriana LaGrange moves forward with this system reorg, the province will be left with a decimated public health system,” she said. LaGrange said during Question Period in the Alberta Legislature the complaint that came in January was dealt with. “The individual was contacted because they had medical healthcare being provided, and we wanted to make sure they were in fact getting the medical healthcare,” she said. “That was confirmed to us they were getting the medical healthcare that they needed.” She pointed out four investigations into CSS are ongoing. As soon as the Alberta government has responses for the NDP, it will provide them with it. Nixon said during Question Period in the Alberta Legislature Renaud had details wrong about the situation. “They were inside their own apartments,” he said. “A bad operator took those individuals, moved them to two different motels.” He said the Alberta government found these clients, took action, and made all of them safe. It took action in under two days. The Alberta government initiated four investigations into CSS over vulnerable people being sent to the Park Inn by Radisson Edmonton Airport to receive care in March. READ MORE: Alberta government launches investigations into Edmonton social services organization“Our immediate goal was to ensure residents are supported and connected to services,” said Nixon. “Our secondary objective though is to make sure the situation is investigated properly.”
