Alberta NDP MLA Sarah Hoffman (Edmonton-Glenora) said she would put her record as health minister up against Health Minister Adriana LaGrange any day.

Although LaGrange has insisted she has done great as health minister, Hoffman said Alberta emergency departments had been closed for 38,000 hours in 2023.

“Probably it will be higher this year,” said Hoffman in a Thursday speech during Question Period in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.

“This last week, Fairview, Lac La Biche emergency departments were closed multiple days.”

Since EDs had been closed for 38,000 hours, she said rural MLAs should not be laughing at it or be proud of it. She called for rural MLAs to stand up for their constituents and ensure they have access to healthcare.

She asked why LaGrange was sitting on her hands rather than signing the contract she negotiated with doctors and vowed to sign months ago.

Hoffman started off by saying Alberta NDP leader Naheed Nenshi asked Rural Municipalities of Alberta (RMA) Fall Convention and Tradeshow delegates during a speech about if they had to drive at least one hour to get to a hospital.

“About a third of the folks in the room said yes,” she said.

“When you or someone you love is sick or dying, every minute matters.”

Far too often, she said Albertans arrive outside of an ED outside of Edmonton and Calgary and find a sign telling them it is closed and have to driver further. She asked LaGrange to tell the Legislative Assembly of Alberta how many hours EDs were closed last year.

While EDs were closed last year, LaGrange said it is the reason the Alberta government is working with rural communities to ensure it has a rural health strategy.

“Mr. Speaker, I find it ironic that the members opposite are so concerned about rural health,” said LaGrange.

“They didn’t care about it before.”

In fact, she said the Alberta NDP took the Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre off its capital plan when it was in government.

If Hoffman wants to put her record up against LaGrange’s, she said she was happy to compare.

“Let’s take a walk down memory lane,” she said.

“Under her leadership as health minister, wait times for cataract, hip replacement, and knee replacement surgery all rose by 30% or more.”

When Hoffman was health minister, LaGrange said cataract surgery wait times went from 10.6 weeks to 16.9 weeks. As of August, she noted the current wait time for cataract surgery is 12 weeks.

Hoffman responded by saying Albertans could get a family doctor in every major municipality when she was health minister.

“That’s certainly not the case today,” she said.

She acknowledged almost one million Albertans do not have access to a family doctor. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and LaGrange promised they would improve healthcare.

It has been 177 days since Smith went to doctors and said she would sign the new contract. Now there are closed EDs and almost one million Albertans without a family doctor, including 20,000 in Lethbridge.

Hoffman questioned if Smith would sign the contract. She said did she not mean it or could she not convince her cabinet.

However, LaGrange said everyone “could find a family doctor because they drove hundreds of thousands of people out of Alberta.”

“Mr. Speaker, under her record, hip replacement waits increased from 13.1 weeks to 18.9 weeks, and knee replacements rose from 14.7 weeks to 19.1 weeks,” she said.

As of August, LaGrange said the average wait time for a hip replacement was 15.9 weeks — lower than the 18.9 under Hoffman’s watch. With knee replacements, she said wait times under her are better.

While Hoffman might insist she was a better health minister, LaGrange said she was happy to put her record up.

LaGrange said on a Wednesday panel at the RMA Fall Convention and Tradeshow the Alberta government was looking at all options to improve the healthcare system.

Hoffman resigns as Alberta NDP deputy leader to run for leadership

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