Hundreds gathered for a rally at the Sussex Health Centre on Feb. 17, 2020. (Photo: Brad Perry)
Hundreds rallied outside the Sussex Health Centre on Family Day to show their support for the facility.
Sussex was one of six New Brunswick communities which would have seen their emergency rooms closed between midnight and 8 a.m. starting March 11.
But after days of backlash following last Tuesday’s announcement, Premier Blaine Higgs announced late Sunday he would cancel the changes until consultations could be done.
“Today is a hell of a lot better day than the last four or five days,” Bruce Northrup, the MLA for Sussex-Fundy-St. Martins, told the crowd during Monday’s rally.
The rally was organized on Friday — before the Higgs government reversed the planned changes — but those behind the event felt it was still important to have.
“People need an opportunity to come together to visibly show the CEO of Horizon and Vitalité and our elected officials that this is an issue that is one of the most important that we face as New Brunswickers,” said Marc Thorne, the mayor of Sussex.
Local MLA Bruce Northrup says today is a “hell of a lot better day” than the days after Tuesday’s announcement of the health care reforms. pic.twitter.com/lBv3OANpST
— Brad Perry (@BradMPerry) February 17, 2020
During an interview before the rally, Thorne said there is some relief in the community, but they are worried their emergency room could still close in the future.
“The approach taken by the health authorities and by government was scorched earth,” said. “That creates a lot of fear and that fear doesn’t go away quickly.”
Thorne said citizens need to be engaged from the start, which is what the premier has now promised with a series of consultations in the affected communities.
Former deputy premier Robert Gauvin spoke at a rally in Sussex on Feb. 17, 2020. (Photo: Brad Perry)
Former deputy premier Robert Gauvin, who quit the Higgs government last week over the controversial changes, also spoke at Monday’s rally.
Gauvin received several rounds of applause from the crowd during his address.
“My dad was a minister during the [Richard] Hatfield years and he did what was the right thing … you put the people before the politics,” said Gauvin, who now sits as an independent MLA.
Meanwhile, Northrup said he will continue to fight for the Sussex Health Centre.
“We have to have the Sussex Health Centre in full operation. We need our lab, we need our x-ray department, and most of all, we need our emergency room,” he said.
Rallies were also planned for the other affected communities across the province.
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