The NDP wants to know why the amount of public money spent on private agency nurses reached nearly $140 million over the past year.

NLHS had estimated last year that it would spend approximately $70 million on agency nurses, but the NDP says recent ATIPP requests show the cost has doubled.

Labrador West MHA Jordan Brown argues that the money spent on travel nurses could be used to recruit more nurses in rural parts of the province.

Health Minister Krista Lynn Howell says the use of travel nurses dropped last year, but she would not specify by how much.

“We have decreased our overall reliance on travel nurses, and we’re continuing to recruit for nursing positions,” she told the House of Assembly. “We do have an overall decrease in the vacancy rate of nurses here in Newfoundland and Labrador, so our recruitment plan is working.”