FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 9, 2025
Statement from Matt MacFarlane: More Islanders are waiting for a family doctor today than just one month ago
Charlottetown, PE – Yesterday Health PEI CEO Melanie Fraser appeared before the Standing Committee on Health and Social Development to present the Health PEI 2025–2026 Business Plan. Despite the fact we are now seven months into the fiscal year, we learned that the plan meant to operationalize Health PEI’s strategic plan is still not complete.
Meanwhile, one in five Islanders still do not have a family doctor and there is no evidence that this is improving. The patient registry numbers for September are in and, once again, they’ve grown. More Islanders are waiting for a family doctor today than just one month ago.
That’s not just a number. That’s thousands of Islanders, seniors managing chronic illnesses, parents trying to access care for their kids, and young people navigating the healthcare system on their own for the first time, all left without consistent access to primary care.
Health PEI’s difficulty with getting more Islanders affiliated with a primary care provider may have something to do with the CEO’s decision to pick an unnecessary and damaging fight with family doctors on PEI. I am told this has already hurt PEI’s reputation in the broader medical community. Yet rather than holding Health PEI accountable, this government continues to pour millions into Health PEI executive leadership and bloated administration.
We are a small province and that comes with challenges but it also has many benefits. We do not have the same challenges that the larger provinces have with trying to deliver healthcare to millions of residents spread out over thousands of kilometers. With the right focus on what truly matters, Islanders could and should have the best access to healthcare in Canada. What we need is a government with leadership that will deliver real results for Islanders.
Matthew MacFarlane
Leader of the Green Party of PEI
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For media inquiries, please contact:
Katie Rankin
Chief of Staff
Office of the Third Party
Tel: (902) 213-6378
Email: kerankin@assembly.pe.ca