PC government isn’t fixing women’s healthcare, it’s cutting it: NDP

HALIFAX — On Monday, NDP Leader Claudia Chender and women advocating for better health care called on the Houston government to immediately create a provincial women’s health strategy so that all Nova Scotians can get the care they deserve.

Right now, only seven per cent of Canadian research funding goes toward women’s health, and in a recent survey from the IWK, 70 per cent of respondents said the current system doesn’t meet their healthcare needs. Instead of looking for opportunities to fund more research into women’s bodies and experiences, or providing more support for mental health and caregiving, the Houston government cut women’s health research and trauma-informed care at the IWK, as well as the Caregiver Benefit.

“Women and gender diverse Nova Scotians deserve better. We matter. Our health matters,” said Chender. “Tim Houston got elected on a commitment to fix health care and today we’re demanding that he keep that promise, for all of us.

“What we’re seeing in this budget is more cruel cuts for those who can least afford it. We already don’t have the mental health care we need, and research in women’s health is sorely lacking. The Caregiver Benefit is already an insulting amount for Nova Scotians who are caring for loved ones. Their tireless work keeps more people out of our hospital system, and instead of supporting them, this government’s response is a 20 per cent cut. Honestly, it’s hard to understand.”

Despite a commitment to fix health care, the Houston government still hasn’t delivered the promised Menopause Centre of Excellence, there is no free birth control or take-home cervical cancer screening tests, and the dense breast screening that is available in other provinces doesn’t exist in Nova Scotia. More than 15,000 women in the province are waiting for routine care, including mammograms at the IWK Health Centre, right now. These women will be waiting, on average, for 3 years just to see a doctor.

“When women don’t get the care they need, it affects our families, our communities and our economy," said Susan Leblanc, the NDP Critic for the Office of the Status of Women. "This work can’t happen piece-meal and progress can’t ebb and flow with changing governments. We need a provincial women’s health strategy and evidence-based direction to inform and drive the work of government.”

New Democrats have tabled legislation to create a taskforce of health care professionals, policymakers and researchers involved in healthcare for women and gender diverse people, and patients with experience of women's health issues.

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