Ministerial Statement – Minister Haggie Announces Enhancement to the 811 HealthLine

  • Health and Community Services

June 11, 2020

The following statement was given today in the House of Assembly by the Honourable John Haggie, Minister of Health and Community Services:


Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to announce an enhancement to the existing 811 HealthLine that will improve access to primary care.

People can now schedule a virtual appointment with a nurse practitioner for urgent, non-emergency health issues via telephone, text or video.

Nurse practitioners are valued members of the health care system and these virtual walk-in clinics are available seven days a week from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

To make an appointment, people can call 811 or use the 811 HealthLine app. The app can be downloaded free through the Apple and Google Play app stores.

This government is committed to improving primary health care, of which virtual care has become so important.

In saying this, I want to thank the physicians in our province who so quickly adapted their practices to provide virtual care because of COVID-19.

I am delighted that Newfoundland and Labrador is the first jurisdiction in Canada to introduce widely accessible province-wide virtual primary care from nurse practitioners.

The 811 HealthLine service and app were developed and are administered by Fonemed, a Newfoundland and Labrador company.

Fonemed is also recognized on the global stage, serving clients nationally and internationally. Something else we can all be proud of, Mr. Speaker.

2020 06 11 1:50 pm