Personal care home inspection reports go public

REGINA — A bill was passed and proclaimed with support from both sides of the Saskatchewan Legislature on Wednesday that will result in publication of inspection reports on personal care homes.

“The bill just received third reading and royal assent and we have draft regulations that have been produced in very short order early this morning. We’re going to take about a week to go back and just do a quick round of consultation on those,” Health Minister Dustin Duncan told reporters in Regina.

Duncan said the government initially planned to release the reports after a new computerized system was created. That work will continue over several months, but the government will have an “interim posting” of inspections in two to three weeks, he said.

The government tried to pass the legislation Tuesday after calls from the Opposition for urgency — but the Opposition wanted to follow usual procedure and address the bill in committee, which the government then made happen Tuesday evening.

Opposition Leader Cam Broten — who has been pushing for publication of the reports — said Wednesday that Premier Brad Wall’s earlier comments that legislation was needed before publication were inaccurate. The government could have posted the documents, but was acting on legal advice that legislated authority would be preferable.

“They could have been doing them since 2012 ... But I’m happy. Royal assent happened today. That was the earliest it could have happened,” Broten said.