British Columbians are giving their provincial government poor marks when it comes to handling health care, according to a new survey from Angus-Reid.
Whereas 63 per cent of British Columbians said in 2020 that government has done a good or very good job in handling health care, that number has dropped to 27 per cent in 2023.
The survey tracked dwindling satisfaction with health care across the country, but nowhere was this drop — 36 per cent — more pronounced than in B.C., whose New Democratic government under former premier John Horgan enjoyed the highest approval rating in Canada when it came to handling health care in 2020.
Premier David Eby, who succeeded Horgan in late 2022, said the provincial health care system and the people who deliver health care found themselves under “huge strain” during the pandemic.
“(That) continues,” he said, when asked about that survey at a cancer-care related announcement in Vancouver. “The demands on our frontline health care professionals have never been higher, our population growth has never been higher, the rapid aging of our population has never been higher.”
He added that the “legacy” of the pandemic is combining with the “chronic under-funding of our health care systems for many years” to “impact health care delivery right here in British Columbia, but not just B.C., right across Canada.”
Albertans give their provincial government the best marks with 37 per cent responding good, followed by Saskatchewan with 31 per cent. The average for the surveyed provinces (minus Prince Edward Island for reasons of sampling size) was 24 per cent.
Eby said he is working with his provincial counterparts to coordinate policies while continuing to advocate with the federal government.
“Health care was one of the key issues that I raised and prioritized (at) my swearing-in ceremony and it is one our government will be working on,” he said. “Today’s announcement (on cervical cancer) is part our taking action to improve health care outcomes for British Columbians.”
B.C., he added, will continue with measures, such as improving access to family doctors by recognizing international credentials and opening up a new medical schools.
“Ensuring that every British Columbians has access to health care they need in the communities where they live is a huge priority of our government and will remain so,” he said.
RELATED: Minister says B.C. making significant progress toward good health
No province has seen growth in public approval from 2020 through 2023 in their handling of four key policies: health care, housing affordability, education, or drug and addiction policy.
Consider housing. As Angus Reid notes, “calls for help on the housing affordability file” started well before 2020 and have only intensified since in the face of rising interest rates and rents. In 2020, 23 per cent of British Columbians said government has been doing a good or very good job when it comes to handling housing affordability. By 2023, that number has dropped to 12 per cent.
Three provinces — Ontario, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia — have worse housing approval ratings than B.C.’s. Approval rates are the highest in Saskatchewan (37 per cent) and Alberta (27 per cent).
B.C.’s government passed several pieces of housing-related legislation last year and Eby has promised additional housing measures in the upcoming spring session of the legislature in run-up to October’s provincial election.
Looking at other issues, more than four out of 10 British Columbians said government has done a good or very good job in handling education, tied for first in the country. Just under four out of 10 British Columbians also said government has done a good or very good job in handling emergency management and the environment, respectively. Almost half said B.C.’s government done a good or very good job in handling issues around First Nations.
@wolfgangdepner
wolfgang.depner@blackpress.ca
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.