Sask NDP says the Sask Party government is turning its back on rural families as emergency rooms keep closing across the province, even while a cabinet minister tours rural areas to promote the government’s health spending.Sask NDP Health Critic Keith Jorgenson accused Premier Scott Moe and Health Minister Jeremy Cockrill of “pathetic, disgraceful leadership.” He stood outside the government’s Saskatoon cabinet office and listed at least 16 communities from Maple Creek in the southwest to Porcupine Plain in the east that have lost full emergency care since early June. Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) says staff shortages, mainly among registered nurses, are forcing temporary service disruptions until relief can be found in communities.“What has been the Sask Party response to this disaster? Well, you all know it’s been nothing,” Jorgenson told the media.“They either are lost and don’t know what to do or they don’t care. Maybe it’s both. This is pathetic, disgraceful leadership. We deserve public accountability. We deserve a plan to prevent these emergency rooms from closing and to properly staff them over the long-term.”.Sask NDP’s criticism comes as Sask Party Rural and Remote Health Minister Lori Carr continued a summer swing through Nokomis, Wynyard, and Foam Lake. "It has been a wonderful opportunity to travel throughout the province over the past months and meet with dedicated health professionals in each community," said Carr. "Our government remains committed to ensuring high quality healthcare for residents close to home, and safe, modern facilities to attract the best healthcare professionals to this province."Carr pointed to $760,000 set aside for roof work at Foam Lake Jubilee Home next year, along with $150,000 for a new air conditioning system, and $281,000 spent on repairs at the Nokomis Health Centre since 2022.Jorgenson dismissed those figures as “window dressing,” arguing that bricks and mortar mean little without nurses and doctors to staff them. Jorgenson urged residents to call his office with details of closures so the Sask NDP can keep public pressure on the government. .“We don’t have to settle for this — we can demand better,” said Jorgenson. “We can elect a government that is focused on the future, that has a plan to fix healthcare and ensure it’s there for people when and where they need that. The Saskatchewan NDP is building that plan. We have much more to say about the future of healthcare in our province in the days and weeks ahead.” Patients in Kamsack learned on the weekend they had to drive west to Canora or all the way to Yorkton or Preeceville, while Preeceville’s hospital has faced interruptions of its own this summer. Similar notices have gone up in Watrous, Edam, Kipling, Broadview, Leader, and other rural areas of Saskatchewan.Sask NDP says it will roll out a detailed rural healthcare platform “in the days and weeks ahead.” Until then, Jorgenson vows to keep naming every closed ER and demanding an explanation from the Sask Party government.
