Gaétan Barrette (born July 5, 1956) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

politician in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, who was elected to the

National Assembly of Quebec The National Assembly of Quebec (officially in french: link=no, Assemblée nationale du Québec) is the legislative body of the province of Quebec in Canada. Legislators are called MNAs (Members of the National Assembly; french: link=no, déput ...

in the 2014 election. He represented the electoral district of

La Pinière La Pinière is a provincial electoral district in the Montérégie region of Quebec, Canada that elects members to the National Assembly of Quebec. Its territory corresponds to the city of Brossard, less its "P" and "V" sectors that are located no ...

as a member of the

Quebec Liberal Party The Quebec Liberal Party (QLP; french: Parti libéral du Québec, PLQ) is a provincial political party in Quebec. It has been independent of the federal Liberal Party of Canada since 1955. The QLP has always been associated with the colour red; e ...

until retiring from politics at the

2022 Quebec general election The 2022 Quebec general election was held on October 3, 2022, to elect the members of the National Assembly of Quebec. Under the province's fixed election date law, passed in 2013, "the general election following the end of a Legislature shall b ...

. Prior to his election to the legislature, he was a

radiologist Radiology ( ) is the medical discipline that uses medical imaging to diagnose diseases and guide their treatment, within the bodies of humans and other animals. It began with radiography (which is why its name has a root referring to radiatio ...

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Hôpital Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hôpital Maisonneuve-Rosemont is a hospital in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, located in the boroughs of Rosemont–La Petite-Patrie and Mercier-Hochelaga-Maisonneuve. It serves the eastern part of the city and offers 800 beds. It employs 5,000 people ...

. He ran in the

2012 election This national electoral calendar for 2012 lists the national/ federal elections held in 2012 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included. January *3–4 January: ...

as a candidate of the

Coalition Avenir Québec The Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ; , ) is a Quebec nationalist, autonomist and conservativeTerrebonne Terrebonne, meaning ''good earth'' in French, is a name of several places in North America: ;Canada *Terrebonne, Quebec, a suburb of Montreal ** Terrebonne station, a commuter railway station in Terrebonne, Quebec **Terrebonne City Council, the go ...

, but ran as a Liberal in 2014. He was named Minister of Health and Social Services on April 24, 2014. His tenure as heath minister was considered so controversial that leader

Philippe Couillard Philippe Couillard (; born June 26, 1957) is a Canadian business advisor and former neurosurgeon, university professor and politician who served as 31st premier of Quebec from 2014 to 2018. Between 2003 and 2008, he was Quebec's Minister of Hea ...

instead tapped Getrude Bourdon, who resigned from her role as the CEO of the Laval University hospital to run as a candidate in the riding of

Jean-Lesage Jean-Lesage is a provincial electoral district in the Capitale-Nationale region of Quebec, Canada that elects members to the National Assembly of Quebec. It consists of parts of the Beauport and La Cité-Limoilou boroughs of Quebec City. It wa ...

if the party won the 2018 election.

Indigenous Health

As Health Minister of Quebec, in 2018 Dr. Barrette opposed the families and physicians who were fighting against Quebec's practise of not allowing Indigenous families to accompany their critically ill children on flight transportation for urgent care. He was recorded making the comment "I guarantee you that there will be at least one instance in the next six months where someone will not be allowed to get on the plane. Why? Because no one — agitated, drugged, under whatever influence — would get on the plane at any cost. That will not happen. And that happens all the time." Indigenous leaders called for his immediate resignation, and did not accept his delayed, eventual apology. The ministry did later change regulations to allow for caregivers or parents to accompany their ill children on urgent medical air transfers, after years of discussions.

Electoral record

* Result compared to Action démocratique

References

External links

National Assembly profile
Quebec Liberal Party MNAs Living people French Quebecers Canadian radiologists 1956 births Members of the Executive Council of Quebec People from Brossard People from La Tuque, Quebec Université de Montréal alumni University of San Diego alumni Grenoble Alpes University alumni 21st-century Canadian politicians Health ministers of Quebec {{Liberal-Quebec-MNA-stub