Health Minister Margaret MacDiarmid issued the following statement today in response to an audit report from the Office of the Auditor General, which examined a government service delivery contract with MAXIMUS BC.

Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month provides a great opportunity for British Columbians to learn more about preventing, treating and beating the third most-common cancer in Canada.

The government of B.C. and the British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC) are providing a total of approximately $11 million this year for responsible gambling programs and services.

To help British Columbians make informed gambling choices, the government of B.C. has increased funding for responsible gambling, and the British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC) is funding a new research centre.

Dr. Perry Kendall, provincial health officer for British Columbia, has been awarded the Queen's Diamond Jubilee medal.

British Columbia recruited a record 268 physicians in 2012 from across Canada and internationally as part of efforts to improve access to quality health care for B.C. families.

Amendments introduced today to the Medicare Protection Act will create authority to set regulations that would allow British Columbians who take longer-term vacations out of the province, such as "snow birds", to stay on holidays for an extra period of time.