NDP hospitals petition gathers 1500 signatures in first week

NEW WATERFORD -- A petition created by the NDP Caucus has collected over 1500 signatures in its first week online. The petition calls on the McNeil government to keep community hospitals open.

“The community is angry about this decision and I don’t see that anger going away anytime soon,” said Tammy Martin, MLA for Cape Breton Centre and the NDP Spokesperson for Health. “These hospitals were built by the community and we won’t let them go without a fight.”

Stephen McNeil announced last week that his government would close the Northside and New Waterford Hospitals, replacing them with community health centres that will not have emergency services.

“People in Cape Breton have been dealing with a lack of health care services for a long time. For the Liberals to come down here and announce they will shut down two hospitals and call it an investment is infuriating,” said Martin. “The people in New Waterford won’t see it as an investment when they have to drive to Sydney in the middle of a health emergency.”

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