The Alberta government has appointed a former Manitoba judge to lead a third-party probe into allegations of government interference in medical procurements.
Raymond E. Wyant, former chief judge of the Provincial Court of Manitoba, will lead an independent review of Alberta government and Alberta Health Services (AHS) procurement practices, said Christopher McPherson, acting deputy minister of Alberta’s executive council, in a March 3 news release.
This comes after former AHS head Athana Mentzelopoulos filed a lawsuit last month alleging she was removed from her position on Jan. 8 because she had launched an internal investigation into AHS contracts and procurement practices.
She also says she was pressured by Alberta government officials to sign new deals for chartered surgical facilities, which are private health-care facilities approved by the province to perform publicly funded surgeries. Her allegations haven’t been tested in court.
“I asked Premier Smith to issue a ministerial order to facilitate his work and she has done so. Judge Wyant’s work on this matter begins immediately,” McPherson, who had been tasked with retaining the third party, said in the release. “Appointed under the Government Organization Act, Judge Wyant will operate independently of government.”
Wyant will review the relevant legislation, regulations, and policies related to health contracting in the province, as well as their application to the procurement of pharmaceuticals and to services offered by chartered surgical facilities, the province said.
Wyant will examine issues such as “whether or not any elected official, Government of Alberta or AHS employee, or other individuals, acted improperly during the procurement processes,” and whether government and AHS employees, as well as members of the companies involved in procurement, properly disclosed and investigated potential conflicts of interest during procurement processes.
The province has given Wyant a budget of $500,000 to conduct the investigation, which will involve interviewing all relevant parties; reviewing directives, agreements, reports, and any documents deemed relevant; and undertaking related tasks considered necessary, such as additional analysis.
Wyant will deliver an interim written report by May 30, and a final report and recommendations, which will be made public, by June 30. Wyant will be paid $31,900 per month, the same remuneration as the chief justice of the Alberta Court of Justice.
The province said Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction will hold the budget for this investigation to ensure additional independence.
Alberta Opposition NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi, who has been calling for a public inquiry on the matter since the allegations first emerged, said the third-party review is “simply not good enough,” arguing the investigation has strict terms and limited scope.
“Because this is not a public inquiry, the judge cannot subpoena witnesses and require them to give evidence under oath,” Nenshi said in a March 3 press release. “He is also limited to rely only on the information provided by the government itself. He has been asked to deliver a report to the very office he’s investigating, and then let the Premier sit on it for a month.”
Wyant, who fully retired as a judge last year, was appointed to the Manitoba bench in 1998, before becoming chief judge in 2002 and holding that position for seven years. He previously worked as a criminal defence lawyer, Crown attorney, and deputy director of Manitoba prosecutions.
Wyant’s investigation will proceed alongside a separate review by Alberta Auditor General Doug Wylie. Shortly after the allegations were made public, Wylie on Feb. 6 announced a review of provincial government and AHS procurement practices to assess their effectiveness and address “concerns or allegations related to contracting and potential conflicts of interest.”
Wylie said the examination “currently pertains to Chartered Surgical Facilities, Medication (ibuprofen or acetaminophen), and COVID-19 Personal Protection Equipment,” but that it may extend to other organizations.
Last week, Alberta Infrastructure Minister Peter Guthrie resigned from cabinet citing concerns over the provincial government’s procurement practices across all departments. Guthrie said he had “line of sight” into those processes and took steps to address inconsistencies while recommending improvements.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said that her government will fully cooperate with the investigations, adding that she herself was not involved with procurement decisions.
“We also want to determine why, despite months of requests, AHS never brought any substantive evidence or documentation related to this matter to the Minister of Health or to government,” Smith said in a Feb. 25 statement. “I want to reiterate that I was not involved in these procurement decisions, nor am I aware of any wrongdoing with regard to the issues raised by the former CEO.”
Health Minister Adriana LaGrange has said many of Mentzelopoulos’s accusations are “clearly false,” and that she will submit a statement of defence.
