The provincial government says there will be no job losses and people who continue to be employed in health care under the restructured system will not have to move. Minister Tom Osborne shared more detail today on the amalgamation of four health authorities and the Centre for Health Information into one entity.

Minister Osborne says the changes include the establishment of several regional health councils which will be day-to-day working entities with staff hired based on qualifications. He didn’t have a lot of other information on those bodies except to say that they will be the voice for the various regions. No money will be saved immediately but staff will be reduced gradually through attrition and efficiencies.

Teams of specialists will go around the province as medical staff will be able to easily transfer to every nook and cranny with a single health agency whereas currently, moving to the employ of a different health authority is a bureaucratic nightmare.

Osborne says COVID has taught us that people can work from home, so that is expected to be used more widely as the mergers will not result in a larger corporate presence in St. John’s than which currently exists.