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Tourists Rack Up $200M in Unpaid Health Bills While BC Patients Wait Years for Care


While British Columbians wait years for basic medical care, the NDP government has allowed non-residents to rack up $200.6 million in unpaid health bills since 2020-2021. New research from SecondStreet.org, obtained through a freedom of information request, revealed that people from outside Canada are coming to BC, receiving health services, and leaving without paying their bills. 

The losses span every health region in the province.

"British Columbians are not guaranteed timely access to healthcare, be it treatment or diagnostics, and this situation continues to deteriorate under the NDP," said Anna Kindy, MLA for North Island and Critic for Health. "Taxpayers are footing the bill for tourists' health treatments to the tune of over $200 million, enough to cover over 21,000 hip replacements in this province while British Columbians wait months to years for that surgery.”

The research found BC has the worst record of any province in Canada examined so far. Under a decade of NDP mismanagement, the government has allowed this gap to widen with no accountability and no fix in sight.

"We are seeing British Columbians driving hours for basic medical care, waiting months for diagnostics, and years for surgery. Meanwhile this research shows tourists are walking into BC hospitals, getting treated, and leaving without paying a cent. That is an absolute failure of this government's priorities," said Kindy.

"At what point did they know about this, and why has it never once come up in a budget or health spending review?" Kindy added.

“This is yet another example of the NDP's fiscal mismanagement and exactly why we need greater public transparency and where our healthcare dollars are going," said Kindy. "British Columbians are waiting years for care while this government looks the other way. That has to change." 

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