The Alberta government is embarking on a significant restructuring of its healthcare system, outlined in a bill proposed on Tuesday. The legislation aims to dismantle the current provincial health authority, Alberta Health Services (AHS), which oversees various healthcare delivery aspects, and replace it with four new provincial health agencies.
Under the new structure, Health Minister Adriana LaGrange will assume a central role, setting the agenda and overseeing the entire system, including budgets and workforce placement. The restructuring is intended to enhance efficiency, accessibility, and patient-centered care.
The first agency to become operational, Recovery Alberta, will be led by Mental Health and Addiction Minister Dan Williams and is expected to be operational by this summer. Agencies responsible for acute care, primary care, and continuing care are slated to follow in the fall, each headed by its own CEO.
LaGrange will hold a dual role, overseeing each of these three sectors while maintaining oversight of all four new agencies. She emphasized that the changes are designed to streamline operations, improve accountability, and provide better support for frontline workers. Approximately 10,000 staff will be impacted by the transition to Recovery Alberta.
For the time being, AHS will retain responsibility for public health functions, such as restaurant inspections. The legislation does not specify which agency will assume these responsibilities in the future. LaGrange indicated that the office of the chief medical officer of health will remain under her ministry.
A centralized procurement office is expected to manage purchasing for the entire provincial system, a function previously touted as a rationale for AHS.
Opposition health critic Luanne Metz expressed concerns about the government’s plan, arguing that it will centralize more control in Premier Danielle Smith’s office without improving patient outcomes or staff support. LaGrange assured that there will be no job losses for staff transitioning into the new organizations and that every effort is being made to minimize disruptions in patient care.
Existing bargaining units will remain intact, but the restructuring has already drawn criticism from the United Nurses of Alberta, which is currently engaged in a complaint with the Labour Relations Board regarding the planned shift of staff to Recovery Alberta.