N.B. government rules against a public inquiry into travel nurse contracts

The New Brunswick government says it won’t be creating what it calls a “second” public inquiry into what led to several multi-million dollar contracts for travel nurses.

A legislative committee made the request for a public inquiry after three days of hearings from the departments of health and social development and the two health authorities.

So far, the province has spent more than $173 million on travel nurses to fill gaps in the health-care system. Vitalité Health Network remains under contract with one private agency until February 2026.

In a letter to the Clerk of Committees at the New Brunswick legislature, the clerk of the executive council stated there’s “already been an inquiry into the issue.”

“The Government of New Brunswick called in the Auditor General to examine these contracts, and his findings are public for all New Brunswickers to see,” wrote Cheryl Hanson.

Hanson said the focus should be on how to manage the still-existing contract between Canadian Health Labs and Vitalité, saying the province wants to see Vitalité find a legal way to remove itself from that contract.

“An expensive, time-consuming inquiry will not make people remember things differently. We will therefore not be creating a second inquiry into this matter,” she wrote.

At the very end of the committee meeting on June 20, former Health Minister Dorothy Shephard said further information was required to move forward on the issue.

“Before we’re all done, it’s going to be about $340 million, of which about $280 million will be attributed specifically to Vitalité,” she said.

While Shephard acknowledged how difficult the situation has been for Vitalité, and patient and staff safety are “paramount,” she said she’s not “convinced” the problem had been fixed.

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