Alberta’s government has released a third-party investigation from a former judge into the government and health authority’s health-care procurement practices.
Former Manitoba judge Raymond Wyant was tasked with the investigation in March, looking into multimillion-dollar contracts for children’s medication and for surgeries by for-profit providers.
The allegations stemmed from a wrongful dismissal lawsuit filed earlier this year by the former head of Alberta Health Services, Athana Mentzelopoulos.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said in a statement Friday that the investigation involved the review and analysis of over two million documents and the interview and examination of 26 individuals.
Wyant’s report contained 18 recommendations. These include a centralized system for conflict of interest declarations tied to AHS or the agency responsible for procurement; implementing a vendor code of conduct; creating whistleblower protection for AHS employees; mandatory training on conflict of interest declarations and disclosures; and a requirement that all contracts with a value over $10 million be reviewed by the procurement lawyer.
Limited scope of inquiry
The report notes cases of “real or perceived” conflicts of interest involved in procurement of children’s pain medication from Turkey and chartered surgical facility contracts.
“Most people seemed to have assumed that those in charge were aware of and had dealt with (or were dealing with) these matters, but this does not appear to have been the case. This demonstrates the need for having processes that would allow people to bring matters such as this to the attention of others without fear,” wrote Wyant.
On the pain medication procurement, he said “decision makers in this case should have exercised greater due diligence to ensure that AHS procurement policies were followed.” He said AHS should’ve had the contracts reviewed by its legal team.
Lori Williams, a political professor at Mount Royal University, said the judge faced some restrictions in his investigation and there are still some outstanding questions.
“We don’t have any answer to the central question which is, were surgical procedures and medical equipment, was there overpayment for those things? And did some people profit inappropriately at the expense of taxpayers?” she said.
That sentiment was seconded by Gilles LeVasseur, a law and business professor at the University of Ottawa.
“It raises questions about who was involved, who got the benefits and are there other things we should know that are not there right now in the actual report that should be actually looked at.”
At a news conference Friday, the premier said AHS officials “skipped steps” and said the report made it clear there was no wrongdoing by anyone in government.
“The judge says that it is perfectly legitimate for government officials to make policy decisions. He also said it’s not unusual for AHS to procure medications, that they do it all the time … I would say that its very clear from the report that AHS decision-makers did not follow their own policies.”
Smith said in her statement that the province has made efforts to improve accountability.
“It is clear from the findings in judge Wyant’s report that AHS procurement policies and practices were either insufficient or not properly enforced. Now that procurement is being moved into Acute Care Alberta, as previously announced, our government will be able to ensure stronger accountability and transparency for taxpayers going forward.”
Wyant says he found no evidence of wrongdoing on the part of Smith, her ministers or other political staff. But he wrote that the limited powers afforded to him mean he can’t make any definitive statements.
“That only means that I found no evidence of such,” he says. “I can only make conclusions based on the documents I was able to review and the people I interviewed.”
Because the investigation was not a public inquiry, Wyant says some individuals refused interviews and avoided answering certain questions.
“Because there was not the kind of vigorous examination and cross-examination that would take place in a formal setting, I could not come to conclusions on the credibility of information provided verbally by interviewees.”
‘Legitimate issues’
Mentzelopoulos said in a statement that the report shows there were “legitimate issues” at AHS.
“It is clear from judge Wyant’s findings that the procurement and governance concerns I was investigating during my tenure at Alberta Health Services were serious and needed to be fully investigated,” she said.
The former head of AHS noted that Wyant did not interview the premier or any ministers and his investigation was limited in scope.
But, she added, “within those limits, the report nevertheless identifies many of the same concerns and issues that I was attempting to investigate and address as CEO, and I am thankful for his excellent work.”
NDP MLA and deputy caucus leader Rakhi Pancholi repeated the Opposition’s call for Smith to call a public inquiry.
She pointed to how Wyant introduced his report explaining the limits he faced during his examination due to the terms of reference he had to work within and he wrote that he was not in a position to make “a final and absolute determination.”
“The premier is trying to suggest is that her government has been cleared of any wrongdoing. But this is simply not true,” Pancholi said. “It is not what the report says at all.”
Pancholi said answers are still needed to questions about why AHS staff ignored procurement policies.
“This report does not answer that question because the premier never intended it to, and only a public inquiry will,” she added.
In a statement to CBC News Friday, AHS said it accepted the findings from Wyant’s report and is committed to improving conflict of interest disclosure processes.
“We will co-operate fully to implement judge Wyant’s recommendations.”
Marshall Smith, Danielle Smith’s former chief of staff, said in a text to CBC News that he was pleased with the outcome of Wyant’s report.
“I was interviewed extensively by the judge and supplied him with all documents and records that were asked for and more,” Marshall Smith wrote.
“The judge’s report reflects what I have said from the beginning, I had nothing to do with any procurement process and never pressured anyone to sign any contracts.”
Medical supplier MHCare Medical, which is mentioned several times in Wyant’s report, said it hopes the investigation will correct “many misleading and unfounded assertions.” The statement from MHCare sent Friday noted “none of the judge’s recommendations make mention of MHCare,” and said it supports Wyant’s recommendations.
MHCare said it will continue to review the report and consider what next steps might be taken.