Health care was a major focus for party leaders on day 22 of the New Brunswick election campaign.
Both Liberal Leader Susan Holt and Green Party Leader David Coon made election promises on Thursday.
Holt was in Blackville, where she promised to expand the community’s health clinic into a collaborative care clinic.
It is one of 30 such clinics the Liberal Party has promised to create if elected on Oct. 21.
“We know that people in this community have had a hard time accessing primary care, just like people all over New Brunswick, where we have 180,000 New Brunswickers who don’t have a family doctor,” said Holt.
Meanwhile, the Green Party promised to increase spending on mental health and addictions programs if elected.
Leader David Coon said the Canadian Mental Health Association recommends that mental health and addictions programs account for 12 per cent of the overall health budget.
“In New Brunswick, it would amount to an additional $85-million investment to improve access to mental health care and addictions treatment every year to build out the mental health care system,” said Coon.
“A priority for us is to ensure people’s mental illness is actually treated, so access to psychotherapy will be covered by Medicare.”
Coon said the Greens would also embed mental health support teams in schools and establish two new 50-bed rehabilitation facilities for addiciton treatment.
The Progressive Conservatives did not make any campaign announcements on Thursday.
