The Cariboo Chilcotin Regional Hospital District should hear soon from Interior Health about the next stage of the planning process for the Cariboo Memorial Hospital master plan.
“I was told by Donna Lommer, the CFO, that a letter was being drafted so I take that as a positive sign that our functional planning was approved by the board,” CCRHD chair John Massier told the Tribune Monday.
Massier attended a meeting with Interior Health last week, along with vice-chair and Area H director Margo Wagner, the CRD’s CAO Janis Bell and representatives from other regional hospital districts.
“We were also told that they have submitted their list of IH’s priority capital projects to the Ministry of Health but that they will not release the list until after the election,” Massier said.
The bad news, he learned, is that there will be a reduction starting in 2013/14 of routine capital investments or requests for capital investments.
“These are routine replacements of aging hospital capital equipment that they partner with regional hospital districts on,” Massier said.
“They will make up the shortfall out of their operating budget so any previously announced projects for 2013/14 can proceed but projects planned for 2014 and beyond will be impacted.”
The cuts for 2014 to 2017 range from 60 to 70 per cent, he said.