Attention Premier Scott Moe and members of the Saskatchewan Legislative Assembly:
After your speech on Thursday September 16th , it has become very clear to the people of Saskatchewan that you and the Government of Saskatchewan have been irresponsible to the people of Saskatchewan in the fight against Covid-19.
Let’s begin with the issue of Covid-19, at no time is the death rate the major concern as it is less than 2% of those who contract Covid-19. The only issue with Covid-19 that you and the Government of Saskatchewan have identified is the amount of stress it puts on our healthcare system when there is a wave of infections.
In the last year and a half we, the people of Saskatchewan, have self-isolated, worn masks, skipped holiday traditions, missed birthday celebrations, stopped attending weddings and funerals, our children did not complete classes, graduates were denied graduation celebrations, festivals and tournaments were cancelled, stopped attending large gatherings, limited the number of people in our social circles, limited the number of people in our homes, stopped going to religious services, worked from home, underwent daily screening for employment, participated in remote learning, closed our businesses, claimed bankruptcy, let the banks foreclose on our homes, cancelled vacations, received vaccinations that have not undergone the same testing as previous immunizations, allowed our elderly family members deteriorate in isolation, watched the government overreach into our daily lives, become victims of human rights violations, suffered depression, watched loved ones commit suicide and were denied medical care because our hospitals were overwhelmed due to the number of covid-19 patients in our hospitals across Saskatchewan. Approaching the fourth wave we know that anytime there is a wave our healthcare system is not equipped to handle an outbreak. When we reach about 200 cases of covid-19 that require inpatient care our inpatient / ICU units across the province reach full capacity. There are approximately 1.17 million people in Saskatchewan, which means there is approximately a bed for inpatient/ICU care for 1 person out of every 58,500 people in this province – according to your covid-19 charts and indirect statements.
Well, we the people of Saskatchewan are tired of you putting the blame for this stress on our health care system on we the people. We have done more than our part and it’s time the government does their part. We have seen wave after wave, made drastic adjustments to our life only to have another wave come upon us with the same issue at hand. All of these adjustments that you have asked and mandated are just band aids that are not fixing the real issue – our healthcare system. We can all see and agree, because you have stated in recent press conferences, covid-19 is not over, and it has not gone away. In Wuhan, China the initial response was to build not one, but two hospitals for covid-19 patients – and in record time, the first one was up in two weeks. In the initial wave there was a slight mention by yourself that your government was going to investigate the possibility of building (or converting an existing building) to act as a temporary hospital for when a wave occurs. Our question to you is, where is it? What building has been converted to take on 100-200 patients, in the event that, we have a wave or a pandemic within the province? Or why have ICU beds not been added to our existing hospitals? We are already seeing mutations of this virus that are worse and we know immunization is not a guarantee or a cure. When are you, the Government of Saskatchewan, going to actually do something to fix the real issue? When vaccination is 40%, 30%, 10% effective? Or is it going to take something worse than covid-19, that has a death rate of 10%, 20%, or 30%?
We the people have been more than patient with the Government of Saskatchewan, the time for patience is over. We the people want to see the Government of Saskatchewan create a real solution to the covid-19 stress on our healthcare system. We the people will no longer accept blame for the fact that our healthcare system cannot handle a covid-19 wave. We the people of Saskatchewan did not create this pandemic and we have been very cooperative with the Government of Saskatchewan in dealing with the pandemic. Well, no more, we the people of Saskatchewan are demanding the government be responsible to the people of Saskatchewan and fix our broken healthcare system.
Sincerely,
Kent and Bobbi Worthington on behalf of the People of Saskatchewan