Merritt, B.C., mayor bills province $103,831.87 for ER closures

The mayor of Merritt, B.C., has sent the province a bill for more than $100,000 over the repeated closure of the emergency room at the Nicola Valley Hospital.

Mike Goetz says the ER has been closed 24 times in 2023 and 2024, and every time it happens, costs are downloaded onto the municipality.

When B.C. Emergency Health Services paramedics have to transport someone to neighbouring Kamloops for care, that takes them out of the community for at least two hours, according to Goetz.

That means Merritt firefighters, the majority of whom are on-call volunteers, have to cover any medical calls.

"It's unacceptable. We need an operating ER," the mayor said.

In an invoice shared with CBC News, printed on City of Merritt letterhead, a cost breakdown of $103,831.87 is presented to Premier David Eby.

Those costs include $1,132.06 for medical oxygen, naloxone and other life-saving materials, $55,125 for responding to 497 incidents in 2023 and $43,062.34 for emergency room closures, which are listed as having a unit price of about $1,800.

An additional $4,512.47 in GST is attached to the bill, with a notice that it must be paid in 30 days.

In an accompanying letter, Goetz explains his rationale: "It seems only natural that if you pay for a service, you do not receive, that you should be reimbursed for that lack of service. The City of Merritt has paid in advance for these crucial health-care service days that we did not receive."

The province has not directly addressed Goetz's calls for reimbursement, but speaking in French Monday, Health Minister Adrian Dix told a news conference that the province is "fighting day after day to make sure, when it's possible, to keep our emergency [departments] open during summer but also each day of the year." 

The B.C. government announced in May it would earmark $155.7 million to encourage health-care staff to work in rural communities. That includes expanding the rural incentive program — which offers up to $8,000 to health-care workers in rural areas — to 74 communities, up from 18. 

Goetz said the community needs 44 per cent more nurses, and despite the hiring push, the community remains under-resourced when it comes to health-care staff. 

Goetz is encouraging leaders in other B.C. communities where ER closures have repeatedly occurred to follow his lead.

"[It's] unfair to ask people to pay for something that they're not getting," he said.  "We're concerned about our safety here."