What about at some other time?

PS, Paul, when you say:

I would like to reassure the general public that government is not considering the other cost saving options at this time.

It isn't terribly reassuring to end the sentence with the phrase, "at this time".

It's especially not reassuring when you recall what you told the House of Assembly scant days ago:

MR. ORAM: Mr. Speaker, we were very upfront in telling people that we are now doing an assessment of all X-ray and labs throughout the Province. As we know, the Cameron report was very, very clear in its recommendations that we had to look at laboratory services. I can tell you now that we are assessing every particular site in Newfoundland and Labrador. The assessment is not complete yet but when it is complete we will certainly be back, and we will certainly be making announcements as they become available.

And:

MR. ORAM: Mr. Speaker, this is an ongoing process. We are looking and assessing all laboratory and X-ray services throughout Newfoundland and Labrador. We will be talking to physicians. We will talk to whoever we need to talk to, to gain information as to what needs to be done in terms of looking at the way that we deal with X-ray services and lab services in Newfoundland and Labrador.

The fact, however, remains, Mr. Speaker. That if you look at the Cameron report and you look at recommendations such as number fourteen and number sixteen, you will see very clearly that the Cameron report talks about laboratory services and how we have to look at ways to enhance and change the way we are doing laboratory work, and laboratory work and diagnostic imaging usually go together. So we have to look at both of those particular services as we go through the Province and look at it. This assessment is ongoing and we will continue to assess it. In fact, the assessment of any type of service within health care is an ongoing process that continues forever, I say, Mr. Speaker. So we will continue to assess the services and make a decision based on that.

[...]

We have made no decisions as to where we are going to be going next. We have said very clearly we are doing a complete assessment of all laboratory and X-ray services throughout this Province. We will continue to do that. When the time is right, when we see fit, and when we see that there is a savings or we see that there is a quality of service that can be enhanced, then we will make that announcement at that point in time. We will not be making announcements in the House of Assembly, Mr. Speaker, just based on a whim.