WATCH: Eby pledges $30M expansion of Kelowna General Hospital

BC NDP leader David Eby is promising $30 million to expand Kelowna General Hospital if re-elected, as his party continues to make health care a central focus of its provincial election campaign.

First announced in a statement on Monday, October 19, the funding would support the construction of a permanent inpatient unit on the hospital's sixth floor, replacing a temporary ward located behind the emergency department.

The expansion is intended to increase inpatient bed capacity and address growing demand for hospital services in Kelowna.

“No matter where you live in British Columbia, you deserve quality health care to be there for you when you need it,” Eby said in a statement. “We’ve made progress building hospitals and hiring health care workers, but there’s so much more to do.”

According to the BC NDP, planning for the expansion was already underway before the election was called.

The party says it would fund the project in part through its proposal to increase taxes on the province's highest-income earners, targeting the top 3.88%.

During a media availability in Kelowna on Tuesday, Eby faced questions about why the expansion was being announced just days before the provincial election, despite the hospital's sixth floor remaining unfinished for more than a decade.

Eby acknowledged that the hospital, built in 2012, was designed to accommodate future expansion and said planning by the health authority began before the election.

“The planning work began in advance of the election, recognizing that this is something that people needed,” Eby said. “During the election, we're telling British Columbians, we're telling the residents of Kelowna very clearly how we're going to pay for it.”

Eby maintained that the commitment was included in his party's costed election platform, contrasting it with the BC Conservatives' plan, which he said does not allocate funding for the expansion.

“This isn't just a plan on paper. This is something that's actually going to be delivered,” he said.

Eby was also questioned about how the expanded unit would be staffed amid ongoing shortages of health care professionals across the province.

He said the hospital already has staff who need additional space to accommodate patients, although further recruitment would be required as Kelowna's population grows and new services are introduced.

“The good news is that the staff are at the hospital, and they need the space for the patients,” Eby said. “But the issue currently is capacity at the hospital, and that's why the capital buildout is the critical piece.”

Eby pointed to the province's efforts to recruit additional health care workers, including increased funding to attract American health professionals and plans to help internationally trained doctors enter BC's medical system.

He also highlighted expanded training opportunities for doctors and nurses through new medical school programs and post-secondary institutions.

BC NDP Kelowna Centre candidate Loyal Wooldridge said the proposed hospital expansion was among the priorities he had advocated for alongside local officials and Interior Health.

Wooldridge said the region also needs additional detox beds, long-term care spaces, and mental health services to address growing demand.

“We need to continue to build out long-term care, the mental health and substance use continuum of care, and then build out the sixth floor at KGH,” Wooldridge said.

Eby also highlighted a separate commitment in the BC NDP platform to expand voluntary and involuntary care capacity in Oliver, which would serve patients from the Kelowna region.

He said the additional services would support people experiencing severe mental health challenges, substance use disorders, and brain injuries associated with drug use.

The proposed expansion is part of the party's broader plan to establish specialized care centres across the province.

British Columbians head to the polls on Saturday, Oct. 24.