Alberta Premier Danielle Smith declared that Alberta’s health care delivery system will be divided into four separate entities in an effort to improve access to care. 

In a press conference, Smith reiterated that this plan would organize Alberta’s health care delivery system, aiming to reduce emergency room & surgery wait times. This will further lead to improved access to innovative treatments & recruiting more staff. 

Particularly, the decentralization of Alberta’s health care delivery system will result in delivering health services in primary care, acute care, mental health care, & continuing care. 

What Does This Mean For Newcomers? 

PR landing data from 2022 demonstrates that around 50,000 new PRs landed in Alberta last year. 

As the fourth-largest immigrant destination in all of Canada for 2022, the anticipated changes to Alberta’s health care delivery system would impact a significant number of Canadian newcomers. Moreover, this impact will likely be felt in numerous ways, ranging from health care to employment prospects. 

Employment 

One of the aims associated with this reform is the recruitment of extra staff in the health care industry. This will likely mean that prospective immigrants to Canada will have more opportunities to seek employment in the province. 

Evidence of this potential is evident in numerous places like the recent introduction of category-based Express Entry draws. 

These draws divert from focusing on standard Express Entry draws on an applicant’s CRS score to prioritizing the selection of applicants based on proficiencies & past work experience. 

This year, IRCC selected the following six categories as areas of focus for category-based draws. This year’s categories prioritize immigration applicants with: 

  • STEM Professions
  • Trades
  • Transport 
  • French-Language Proficiency 
  • health care 
  • Agriculture/ Agri-Food 

As demonstrated by the inclusion of health care professions in the list of categories designated by IRCC, the nation needs more skilled workers in this industry. Thus, with the reforms coming to Alberta’s health care delivery system, prospective immigrants will witness a heightened level of opportunity to immigrate to, work, & live in the province.

Alberta’s Recent Growth 

Alberta is experiencing a general boom in population growth over the recent years. In fact, according to Statistics Canada data, the population of the province on July 1, 2023 was 4.7 million, which is 4.1% higher than the last year. 

The same story also noted that the province’s population has recently increased, outpacing the national average by 1.1 percentage points.           

Well, this population growth can be attributed to international immigration. Alberta has seen growth in its labor force, excluding the COVID-19 recovery period. International migration has accounted for over 61% of the total provincial population increase in Alberta. 

ATB Financial Vice President & Chief Economist Mark Parsons asserted that migration to Alberta from other parts of the world offers a steady source of people to fill some job vacancies. 

Immigrating To Alberta 

For international applicants considering Alberta as their destination, the province has pathways available to all kinds of newcomers, including entrepreneurs & temporary workers. 

For instance, Alberta’s Provincial Nominee Program is known as Alberta Advantage Immigration Program. 

This provincial immigration system includes numerous streams of workers as well as entrepreneurs, each of which has different requirements with respect to things like the need for an existing job offer before applying. Below is the sample list of AAIP streams. 

  • For Workers
  • Alberta Opportunity Stream 

It is a pathway to PR in Alberta for skilled workers already working in an eligible profession in the province. 

  • Rural Renewal Stream

It’s a pathway for applicants with an existing Alberta-based employment offer for work in a rural Alberta community.   

  • For Entrepreneurs   
  • Graduate Entrepreneur Stream 

It is a pathway for international graduates of a designated post-secondary institution in Alberta who want to begin a business there.

  • Foreign Graduate Entrepreneur Stream 

It is a pathway for international applicants who graduated from an institution outside Canada & wish to begin a business in Alberta.