An interim report on the third-party investigation the processes used for procurement and contracting by Alberta Health Services has been delayed four months.
The interim report was to be delivered to the government on May 30, 2025, with the final report being delivered by June 30, 2025. The investigation was started after former AHS CEO Athana Mentzelopoulos filed a lawsuit against the province, alleging she was fired at the beginning of the year after looking into alleged overpays on contracts with private surgical providers. In the same lawsuit, the former AHS CEO alleged she dealt with pressure from the Premier Danielle Smith’s office to sign off on agreements even when she had questions surrounding excessive costs.
In a statement Friday Deputy Minister of Jobs, Economy, Trade and Immigration Christopher McPherson, says the reason for the delay is because of the significant number of interview requests by the judge in charge of the investigation and the amount of documents handed over by both AHS and the province.
“An interim report will now be delivered by September 24th, 2025. A final report and recommendations will be delivered by October 15th, 2025, and it will be posted on alberta.ca,” McPherson says.
The mutual decision is said to have been made between the judge and the Deputy Minister of Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction. McPherson adds the information has been shared with Premier Danielle Smith but besides the time extension the Ministerial Order and Terms of Reference if the investigation are unchanged.
“When the investigation was being initiated, I was instructed by Premier Danielle Smith to ensure that Judge Wyant had the time and resources necessary to bring his expertise to bear fully on the matters under consideration,” the statement reads.
Before the announcement of the investigation being extended leader of the official opposition, Naheed Nenshi, issued a statement saying provincial Justice Minister, Mickey Amery, promised the report into what he calls the “CorruptCare scandal” would be out. However, he says Friday he he kept hitting the refresh button and there was nothing. Nenshi adds Albertans deserve transparency when it comes to knowing where and how their tax dollars have been used.
“For months, we’ve been calling for an independent, public inquiry into the CorruptCare scandal. Every step of the way, the minister dismissed those calls and claimed we didn’t need one because he’d release Justice Wyant’s findings to the public,” Nenshi says.
Nenshi added this “was a specific promise to Albertans, it must be kept.”
The investigation into the processes for procurement of pharmaceuticals, and the services offered by chartered surgical facilities started in March of 2025.
