The Provincial Government has committed to funding for an additional 1,500 out-of-hospital cataract procedures, with the aim of improving access to this procedure and reducing wait times.
This one-time addition of 1,500 surgeries will be equally distributed throughout the province amongst the three non-hospital designated facilities. These three designated facilities (two in the Eastern Zone, one in the Western Zone) are authorized to provide out-of-hospital cataract surgery as an insured service.
These additional procedures added to the previously announced 3,300 procedures for the fiscal year 2023-24, which were announced in late September 2022. These, coupled with the procedures that can be performed in hospital facilities will further reduce the wait times and ensure access to this important surgery.
The Department of Health and Community Services recognizes that the effect that COVID-19 had cataract surgery wait times, and thus has provided several one-time increases to the cap on cataract surgery to support this backlog.
Adding additional cataract surgeries allows necessary improvements to the surgery backlog which will benefit both patients and health care professionals alike.
Quotes
“The Provincial Government is proud to provide additional funding to allow for more cataract procedures as part of our efforts to improve access to health care for all Newfoundlanders and Labradorians. Thanks to the advocacy and dedication of my colleagues, the benefits of these province-wide initiatives will be felt across our province’s health care system.”
Honourable Tom Osborne
Minister of Health and Community Services
“Having additional, publicly funded, privately delivered cataract surgeries, performed under a program which has already proven itself to be incredibly successful, will be good for patients and good for our province’s universally accessible, publicly funded health care system. This innovation in health care is benefiting patients throughout the entire province.”
Honourable Gerry Byrne
Minister of Immigration, Population Growth and Skills and MHA for Corner Brook
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