Every BC NDP candidate signs public health care pledge at Delta event
David Eby unveiled a Public Health Care Guarantee in Delta on October 12, with every BC NDP candidate signing on to oppose out-of-pocket charges, queue-jumping, and privatization.
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The BC NDP published a Public Health Care Guarantee on October 12, 2026, saying every one of its candidates has signed on to a pledge opposing out-of-pocket charges for covered care, queue-jumping, and changes that would move staff or resources from the public system. The announcement was made by party leader David Eby at an event in Delta, according to the party's own release.
"Public health care is an expression of who we are as Canadians. It's a promise that we take care of each other, no matter who you are or how big your bank account is," Eby said in the release.
What the guarantee commits each NDP candidate to
The party says each NDP candidate has signed a pledge to oppose three things: out-of-pocket charges for medically necessary care, the ability to pay for faster access to services, and changes that would pull staff and resources away from the public system.
The party says it would bring nurse practitioners under the Medicare Protection Act, which it says would stop clinics from charging user fees for publicly covered services.
The private agency nurse plan
The NDP release says the party would, over three years, phase out hospital use of costly private temp agencies. The plan, as the party describes it, would cap agency fees and hours and prevent people from working as agency nurses in the same hospital where they were recently employed.
The party says savings from this change would be redirected to expand the Go Health BC program, which it describes as a program that sends public travel nurses to rural emergency rooms.
What Eby said about the Conservative platform
Eby's release compares Conservative leader Lorne Doerkson to Alberta's Conservative Premier Danielle Smith. Eby says Alberta passed a law allowing doctors to work in both public and private care and to charge patients out of pocket, letting those who can pay access faster surgery. He says Doerkson ran on a vague commitment to maintain a public system, the same framing Smith used.
"The same thing would happen here under Doerkson and the BC Conservatives," Eby said in the release. This is the party's own characterization of its opponents.
The release also says Conservative health critic Anna Kindy "has openly championed a private, pay-for-care system" and that a Conservative candidate in Nanaimo called a user-pay model "the only solution" to health care challenges. Eby says Doerkson has not ruled Kindy out as health minister. These are Eby's claims about his opponents. The Conservative Party's response to these characterizations was not available at the time this article was written.
Voters can compare each party's health care positions at the BC provincial 2026 party pages. Advance voting is open October 16 to 21. Voting day is October 24, 2026.
Questions this story answers
What is the BC NDP Public Health Care Guarantee?
The BC NDP party announced on October 12, 2026, that every one of its candidates has signed a Public Health Care Guarantee. The party says the pledge commits each NDP candidate to oppose out-of-pocket charges for medically necessary care, oppose queue-jumping by those who can pay for faster service, and oppose changes that pull staff or resources away from the public health system. These are the party's own commitments as stated in its release.
What does the NDP plan to do about private agency nurses?
The BC NDP release says that over the next three years, health authorities will phase out hospital reliance on costly private temp agencies by capping fees and hours. It also says the plan would prevent people from working as agency nurses in the same hospital where they were recently employed. The party says the savings would be redirected to expand the Go Health BC program, which sends public travel nurses to staff rural emergency rooms. All of these are the party's own stated plans and the figures come from the party's release.
What is the Go Health BC program?
The BC NDP describes Go Health BC as a program that sends public travel nurses to staff rural emergency rooms. The party says it would use money saved from phasing out private temp agency nurses to expand this program. This description is from the party's own October 12 release. The party has not published a cost figure for the expansion in this release.
What does the NDP plan for the Medicare Protection Act?
The BC NDP release says the party would strengthen rules and bring nurse practitioners under the Medicare Protection Act to stop clinics from charging user fees for publicly insured, medically necessary services. This is the party's own stated plan. The party's release does not specify a timeline for this change.
What did Eby say about Conservative health care policy?
Eby said, as reported in the BC NDP's own release, that he believes the BC Conservatives would follow the same path as Alberta's Conservative government under Danielle Smith. He said Alberta passed a law allowing doctors to work in both public and private health care and charge patients out of pocket, allowing those who can pay to jump the line for surgery. Eby said Doerkson ran on a vague commitment to maintain a public system, as Smith did before him, and that this is the Conservative approach. This is Eby's own characterization of his opponents' platform.
What did Eby say about Conservative candidates and health care?
Eby said in the BC NDP's own release that a Conservative candidate in Nanaimo called a user-pay model the only solution to health care challenges, and that Conservative health critic Anna Kindy has openly championed a private, pay-for-care system. Eby also said Doerkson has refused to rule Kindy out as health minister. These are Eby's claims about his opponents. The Conservative Party of BC was not quoted in the NDP release and a separate Conservative response was not available at the time this article was written.
Has the Conservative Party responded to the NDP's health care guarantee?
The Conservative Party of BC was not quoted in the BC NDP's October 12 release. A response from the party was not independently available at the time this article was written. Voters can check the party's platform at conservativebc.ca for its own health care commitments.
When and where can voters in BC cast a ballot?
Advance voting for the BC provincial election runs from October 16 to October 21, 2026. Voting day is Saturday, October 24. Voters can find their assigned voting place at elections.bc.ca. Candidates for each district, including each party's health care positions where available, are listed at the BC provincial 2026 candidates page on this site.
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