PrintAlberta nurses congratulate premier-elect Rachel Notley and look forward to working with her
Encouraged by strong support for health care during campaign
United Nurses of Alberta congratulates premier-elect Rachel Notley and her New Democratic Party for their majority election Tuesday and looks forward to working with them to enhance and protect the province’s public health care system, UNA President Heather Smith said.
“We were encouraged during the campaign that Ms. Notley was so strongly committed to maintaining funding and support for Alberta’s public health care system and other public services,” Smith said.
“We believe that Albertans’ strong support for protecting and enhancing our public health care system was a contributing factor to the election results, and we look forward to ensuring the government has the opportunity to work with front-line nurses in finding ways to improve and maintain public health care in Alberta,” she said.
Smith said she hopes the Notley Government can be successful working with the federal government to find a better formula for national funding of health care and to develop a national Pharmacare program, which would save taxpayers billions of dollars and ensure all Canadians have access to the full medical treatments they need.
As the president of an organization that represents large numbers of women, Smith congratulated Notley for running a campaign that saw the election of so many women candidates.
Smith also particularly congratulated the two UNA members who won seats in the Legislature on Monday, Danielle Larivee in Lesser Slave Lake and Cam Westhead in Banff-Cochrane.
“We know there are now members of the government caucus in the Legislature who understand nurses’ workplace issues and labour’s perspective, and we look forward to a positive relationship with Ms. Notley and her government,” Smith said.
