March 16, 2022
Hon. Mary Wilson
Minister of Service New Brunswick Chancery Place
P.O. Box 6000
Fredericton, N.B. E3B 5H1
Via email: Mary.Wilson@gnb.ca
Dear Minister Wilson,
As members of the Greater Moncton Local Immigration Partnership (GMLIP), it has been brought to our attention during our monthly Vulnerable Newcomers meetings that newcomers to our province are having to wait several months with no status updates to receive their New Brunswick Medicare cards, long past the four to six week processing time noted on the application form.
We have heard from international students, newly arrived immigrants and newcomers from other Canadian provinces who have all had to face similarly long wait times. This delay affects not only their ability to access certain health-related services, but also causes undue stress and worry about the cost of their healthcare as well as a reticence to seek much needed services.
The attraction of newcomers is a very competitive game, and one for which our province’s aging population, labour shortages and overall growth cannot afford to fumble. How we treat and service our newcomers affects not only our chances of the newly arriving people to actually stay permanently in New Brunswick, but also our potential to attract additional new and much needed people to our province.
As one of the leading business voices in the province, we would like to add our voice to the growing concern regarding this issue and implore you, as the provincial Minister responsible for Service New Brunswick (SNB), to work towards promptly reducing these delays in the issue of Medicare cards for all newcomers to our province.
We remain available to discuss this issue and solutions at your convenience. Sincerely,
John Wishart
Chief Executive Officer