The report, which studied Alberta’s response to COVID-19, recommends all decisions be made by cabinet instead of bureaucrats in future pandemics.

A panel studying Alberta’s response to COVID-19 is calling for an overhaul in how the province reacts to future pandemics to ensure the premier and cabinet have the “ultimate authority” in responding to health emergencies.
The province has yet to decide if it will act on any of the more than 90 recommendations from the panel, which was led by former Reform Party leader Preston Manning.

The Public Health Emergencies Governance Review Panel report recommends implementing policies for future public health emergencies via the Alberta Emergency Management Agency (AEMA). It also touched on improving the province’s administrative and regulatory framework governing public emergency responses, striking a balance between protections from harm and protecting rights and freedoms, improving the health-care system, and increasing surge capacity.