March for Health Care set for Saturday in North Sydney

NEW WATERFORD – Cape Breton Centre MLA Tammy Martin will join concerned residents and the “Save Our Services” group in their March for Health Care this Saturday in North Sydney.

“The state of health care service in North Sydney and all of Cape Breton is unacceptable,” said Martin, who is also Health and Wellness spokesperson for the NDP Caucus. “If we have to take to the streets to get Stephen McNeil and his Liberal government to listen then we will.”

The march is set for 12 noon on Saturday starting at the North Sydney Irving Mainway. The same group held a number of rallies last year about access to emergency services in Cape Breton. Cape Bretoners face longer wait times than the rest of Nova Scotia to access long-term care and mental health services.

“The situation in Cape Breton is at a breaking point,” said march organizer Lisa Bond. “The emergency room at the Northside General will only be open for 16 days in May. People are very concerned about being able to access emergency care in their communities when they need it.”

According to the ER Accountability Report, Emergency Rooms were closed for 25,124.5 hours in 2017. In Cape Breton, the simultaneous closures of the Northside General Hospital, the Glace Bay Hospital, and the New Waterford Consolidated Hospital have left more than 36,000 Nova Scotians without access to a local emergency department.

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