Stelmach defends health care system, Sherman removal

Premier Ed Stelmach says there is no crisis in Alberta’s health system and defends the decision to punt emergency room Dr. Raj Sherman from the party caucus.

An e-mail sent to Alberta’s 20,000 Conservative party members Friday promotes a year-end video from Stelmach, in which he reinforces the Conservative message on health care and addresses what he calls fallacies about why Conservative MLAs voted to turf Sherman.

“Freedom of speech, freedom to disagree were never an element of this whole matter,” Stelmach says in the video, according to the e-mail. “But when our caucus discussions are done, everyone must ... support the decision.”

In the video, Stelmach is expected to tell party members the provincial health care system is working.

“Reckless claims about the state of Alberta’s health care are untrue,” Stelmach says in the video, according to the e-mail. “Our health-care system is in full operation and patients are receiving quality care.”

Friday’s e-mail and the forthcoming video follow a heated fall session in the legislature.

First, emergency doctors sent a letter to the province warning that emergency health services are facing “potential catastrophic collapse.”

Then, MLA Dr. Raj Sherman — an emergency room doctor and the parliamentary assistant for health — publicly criticized his own government’s handling of the health file. His expulsion from the conservative caucus made headlines, and he later claimed he was the target of a Tory smear campaign and hired high-profile Edmonton lawyer Brian Beresh to represent him.

Days later, AHS boss Stephen Duckett lost his job after he refused to answer reporters’ questions because he was eating a cookie. Following his dismissal, four AHS superboard members quit claiming inappropriate government meddling in board decisions.

Conservative party spokesman Brent Harding said Stelmach will release the video to address fallacies about health care and Sherman’s ejection from caucus.

“Clearly the message that was left during session and after session is that the (health) system is a disaster, and clearly that is untrue,” Harding said. “The critics are making their charges without any support, they have no evidence on which to base their charges.

“The fallacy that the health care system is a disaster — that’s wrong. ... It delivers quality care, they are addressing the wait time issue.”

Harding said the video was supposed to be released Friday but technical issues may delay release until early next week.