Susan Leblanc on ER closures leaving Nova Scotians without care they need

SUSAN LEBLANC: Speaker, my question is also for the Minister of Health and Wellness. This week alone, there have been announcements for emergency room closures at Fishermen’s Memorial Hospital, North Cumberland Memorial Hospital, All Saints Springhill Hospital, Queen’s General Hospital, Eastern Memorial Hospital, Digby General Hospital, Glace Bay Hospital, and Strait Richmond Hospital. Does the minister find it acceptable that Nova Scotians in these communities are regularly left without an open emergency room in their area?

HON. MICHELLE THOMPSON: I will say, as I said a few minutes earlier, the biggest challenges that we’re facing are our capacity in terms of beds, but also in terms of our health care workforce. We know particularly that there is a nursing shortage across this province. We have been working very, very hard. We have increased the number of seats. We’re working with the Collegeof Registered Nurses to bring in internationally educated nurses. We’re doing a very intentional program in order to train and bring nurses into our health care system so that they’re able to care for communities. We’re looking and working with people in the Department of Labour, Skills and Immigration to ensure that internationally educated nurses are settled and transitioned to communities in a very meaningful way. It is going to take time, but certainly we have seen an incredible amount of action and investment in health care since we’ve formed government.

SUSAN LEBLANC: ER closures cause crowding and long waits at regional hospitals as people travel further for care and cause massive stress and delays on paramedics. A FOIPOP filed by our caucus shows that the number of people leaving ERs without being seen continues to go up and up. It has increased again by 24 per cent this year. I can table that. This government promised to fix health care, but to the Nova Scotians facing emergency room closures and lengthy wait times, this just isn’t the case. Yes, it takes time, but Nova Scotians can’t wait any longer. When will the conditions in emergency rooms improve?

MICHELLE THOMPSON: Things are improving. I would draw attention to the Patient Access to Care Act, and the work that’s done with the college: 18,000 nurses have applied to come and live in Nova Scotia -a bill, I might add, that the NDP voted against when they were on the floor of this House. Here we are -we have just settled a new contract with nurses, and we have just settled a new contract with physicians. We are becoming a destination for health care workers around the world, as evidenced by the number of people who are coming here. They don’t want to look at the things that are going well. Ican assure you that we are investing. We are working our tails off to make sure that Nova Scotians have the health care they need and deserve, which was never a priority under the two previous governments.

Susan Leblanc asks why a government shelter has empty rooms in a housing crisis

SUSAN LEBLANC: My question is for the Minister of Health and Wellness. Last week, it was reported that three-quarters of the rooms on the health care floor of The Bridge shelter are sitting vacant. Meanwhile there are hundreds of people experiencing chronic homelessness in Halifax, many of them with serious health issues. We know there are staffing issues at The Bridge and across the whole health care system, but how is it possible that this government is allowing shelter beds to sit empty in the middle of a housing crisis?

HON MICHELLE THOMPSON: We are in a partnership with the Department of Community Services with The Bridge to support individuals experiencing homelessness and who may need health care. Our portion of The Bridge is to look at those folks who need a space to get community-based health care. We look at the ability to prescribe periods of time where people can be sheltered to get that care and make sure it’s safe for both the individual receiving care, as well as the person who is delivering care. We continue towork with our partners in HRM to make sure that those spots for people requiring health care at The Bridge are used appropriately.

SUSAN LEBLANC: That sounds excellent. That sounds great. That’s exactly what we thought that that part of The Bridge shelter was for, and yet three-quarters of it is sitting empty. Meanwhile, there are people on the streets with severe health problems -people who are being released from emergency departments out into homelessness again, instead of to that area. A spokesperson from the Nova Scotia Health Authority stated that on any given day, there are multiple homeless community members who are identified as people who would benefit from intake on this floor. I can table that. Despite this fact, there are already more names on the floor’s wait-list than there are rooms. People awaiting surgery, people using wheelchairs are living rough in this province. How does the minister plan for all these people to be safely and appropriately housed before Winter?

MICHELLE THOMPSON:As I said, we work across departments to find solutions for individuals based on their circumstances. The Bridge is used for people who require short-term care in community, who are experiencing homelessness. Unfortunately, it is not a long-term housing situation for them, but we do work with our allied health care professionals, such as social workers and other individuals in the health care system, to support transition to community for those who need additional support.

Susan Leblanc Asks Housing Minister about Keeping Ocean Breeze Affordable

On the first day of the Nova Scotia Legislature I asked Housing Minister John Lohr how it is possible that his government didn’t reach out to the new developers of Ocean Breeze - traditionally affordable housing to over 1, 000 people - to ensure that it stayed affordable and people did not become homeless?

Full exchange:

SUSAN LEBLANC: Madame Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. Earlier this Summer, the first eviction notices were distributed to tenants of Ocean Breeze, a traditionally affordable housing complex in Dartmouth North that is home to over 1,000 residents. You would think that the sale of such a significant piece of real estate would be of interest to a government that wants to protect affordable housing, but FOIPOP shows no records of correspondence between the department and the new owner. I can table that. In the midst of an affordable housing crisis, how is it possible that the minister didn’t even reach out to the new developer to make sure that Ocean Breeze residents don’t become homeless during this redevelopment?

HON. JOHN LOHR: Madame Speaker, I will say to the member that we have a public-facing part of our department, and our senior staff interact with many different entities -not only developers, but not-for-profits, community housing groups, many different groups, but the way this works is they approach us. If we didn’t interact with them, they didn’t approach us. That’s the reality. We don’t go out and approach groups. They come in and they approach us. That’s how we do it, and we react to that. They come to us looking for information on programs or whatever. This is how this takes place. If we have no record of having communication with them, they didn’t ask for communication. All of our information is readily available online, how to connect with us.

SUSAN LEBLANC: With all due respect, Speaker, a government that is all about action on housing seems to have a strange way of approaching that action when they’re waiting for people to come to us -sitting back and waiting. The developer has been clear that it is open to working with this government to try to maintain affordable housing at Ocean Breeze. After the government didn’t act on an opportunity to purchase the site, we were hopeful that the government would step in to make sure that the housing remains affordable, but FOIPOP documents also show that no funding agreements between the government and the new owners of Ocean Breeze exist. Will the minister make a clear commitment that there will be no net loss of affordable housing due to the redevelopment of Ocean Breeze?

JOHN LOHR: Again, I will say that this is a private development. We will interact if we are asked to interact. I can tell you that we are spending an unprecedented amount of money to preserve affordable housing. One of the examples I will give you is CHAP, which has gotten national recognition, where we have a Community Housing Acquisition Program to enable not-for-profits to purchase. That has preserved and saved hundreds and hundreds of units. We continue to work in this space. We’ve put almost $300 million into housing this year. We will continue to do that. We will continue to build up community housing and not-for-profit housing, which is something that the Affordable Housing Commission report identified as very weak in Nova Scotia. As I’ve said, we’re continuing to do an unprecedented step -a historic step of building public housing units in Nova Scotia. As I’ve said, we’re continuing to do an unprecedented step, a historic step, of building public housing units in Nova Scotia.

Anti 2SLGBTQIA+ Hate and Laws

On March 23 I rose in the Nova Scotia Legislature to give the following statement on the rise of anti-2SLGBTQIA+ hate and laws:

I rise to draw attention to the spate of anti-2SLGBTQIA+ laws that are being put forth and passed in countries around the world.

In the U.S., there are a frightening variety of laws targeting trans people and drag performers. Uganda has just passed legislation criminalizing identifying as LGBTQ+. Russia has banned sharing information on LGBTQ+ identities. These are just a few examples. It’s important, though, that we in Atlantic Canada not think we are beyond this kind of discrimination - there is hate here too. Most recently, organizers of the Little Rainbow event in support of rainbow refugees were the target of online hate, and a Moncton drag story time garnered protests.

I call on this House today to recommit to passing and strengthening laws that will protect, serve, support, and empower 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals and communities in this province. 2SLGBTQIA+ rights are human rights.

Susan Leblanc Questions Houston Government on Heating Help

The income threshold and the refunds given out under the Heating Assistance Rebate Program have not changed in almost 15 years. Recently I asked the Houston government If they would raise the income threshold and the refunds under the program to allow more people to qualify in the @nslegislature. Below is our exchange:

SUSAN LEBLANC: Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Premier. The Heating Assistance Rebate Program is designed to help people with the cost of heating their homes, but the income thresholds and the refunds given out under the program - between $100 and $200 - haven’t changed in almost 15 years. The price of furnace oil hit $1.98.4 cents per litre in Halifax last week and it has gone up about 30 cents since October. Dan McTeague, the President of Canadians for Affordable Energy, says; “I’m not so sure we’re not going to see incidents of people literally freezing this winter.” Will the Premier raise the income thresholds and the refunds under the Heating Assistance Rebate Program to allow more people to qualify for the program?

HON. COLTON LEBLANC: I certainly understand the hardships that Nova Scotians are feeling at the price at the pumps and when it comes to heating their homes with home heating oil. The member is correct: that program did open up earlier this week, with up to $200 for eligible Nova Scotians. We continuously look at ways to improve this program, Mr. Speaker. Again, on this side of the House, we’re very concerned about the impacts of what’s going to happen with the Liberal carbon tax and call on members opposite to join in opposing the federal carbon tax.

SUSAN LEBLANC: I thank the minister for that answer. I will say simply that if you are concerned, then you can do what I’m suggesting in this question and that is raise the threshold for this program because that is in your control. Mr. Speaker, people cannot afford their bills. A Wolfville woman contacted us to say, simply put, a 10 per cent increase in energy costs would likely leave me homeless. I could not afford another apartment. There is no amount of cutting back or efficiency that could close the gap. I’ve already made use of Efficiency Nova Scotia programs. I already use the food bank and I already keep the heat too low. I will ask again: Will the Premier or government expand the Heating Assistance Rebate Program?

COLTON LEBLANC: Mr. Speaker, we’re interested in targeted solutions and that’s why earlier this year we topped up the Heating Assistance Rebate program. All options are on the table. We’re considering what we have to do to support Nova Scotians. Improvements to the program ensure that Nova Scotians were getting the money quicker into their pockets through direct deposit. I’d like to remind the member we did create the Seniors Care Grant and there are actually provisions under that grant now - up to $250 for home heating oil - and I encourage her to remind her constituents about that.