One has to wonder if the provincial government is willing to actually stand up and accept the challenge thrown at them Thursday. And it's hard to ignore the challenge that came from the North Okanagan-Columbia-Shuswap Regional Hospital
District. It involves all of the communities from Golden to Lumby rallying behind two necessary health care projects and taxpayers forking out $100 million of their own cash. All that's needed is Victoria stepping up to the plate. And with such unprecedented regional co-operation, the response from the Ministry of Health better be positive. How could Health Minister George Abbott say no when the evidence grows daily that conditions at Vernon Jubilee Hospital are deteriorating? Part of that $100 million would go towards a new diagnostic and treatment tower. The remainder would be directed to extensive renovations at Shuswap Lake General Hospital in Salmon Arm. Certainly there is pressure on the ministry to address costly health concerns across the province, but that gets to be a tired, meaningless excuse for local health care providers and patients dependent on the system. When do the needs of the North Okanagan-Shuswap - one of the fastest growing regions in B.C. - become a priority? It should also be pointed out again that government-mandated downloading forces local taxpayers of the region to pay 40 per cent of the capital costs through property taxes. With health care being a provincial responsibility, Victoria could be on the hook for the total bill. With local residents willing to do their part, it's about time Victoria got moving on our medical system.
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