A Medicine Hat physician said Wednesday a new family doctor pay deal Alberta is close to finalizing will create a more viable funding model, saying it's an example of what can be accomplished through proper consultation."This is a very positive day for Alberta and for patients in Alberta," said Dr. Paul Parks...

Alberta's health minister says they are closing in on a new pay-deal for family doctors that she says will help recruit and retain more physicians.Adriana LaGragne says the goal is to create more access to primary care for more Albertans.Details and costs of the deal are yet to be hammered out, but the plan is to see d...

Medicine Hat is more likely to receive federal cash through proposed legislation that requires approval from the Alberta government for deals with Ottawa, municipal affairs minister Ric McIver said Tuesday. "There is upcoming no money flowing to Medicine Hat, and there's the problem," McIver told CHAT News. &...

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. says the annual pace of housing starts in March declined seven per cent compared with February.The national housing agency says the seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts amounted to 242,195 units in March compared with 260,047 in February.When looking at year-over-year figu...

Alberta is the third-best region for unidentified object sightings in Canada, according to a new study.Ontario was ranked highest at 2,539 cases, British Columbia reported 1,217 and Albertans reported 697 sightings. The study, conducted by online gambling site Lucky Days, analyzed data from the National UFO Reporting C...

Alberta's tourism industry is back and better than ever. Travel Alberta reports that international visitors spent $2.53 billion in the province in just the first three quarters of 2023. READ: Alberta reveals new tourism strategy it says will boost economy by $159B International tourism spending totalled $2.28 billion f...

At Calgary's Centre for Newcomers, where Kelly Ernst is chief program officer, staff have been - in Ernst's words - "run off their feet."The non-profit organization, which offers services and language training to immigrants and refugees in Alberta's largest city, served an eye-popping 50,000 clients last year...

A non-profit in Lethbridge is being recognized for its work with seniors.Minister of Seniors, Community and Social Services Jason Nixon has announced this year's recipients of the Minister's Seniors Service Awards.He says the winners use their time, talents and resources to protect seniors, improve their quality of lif...

Content warning: Some details of this story may be triggering or disturbing to readers.The Central Alberta Child Advocacy Centre revealed its first ever "State of Child Wellbeing in Central Alberta" community report Friday, with three recommendations to help stem the tragic tide of sexual abuse against childr...

The Crown and defence lawyers have wrapped up their cases in the trial of three men accused of orchestrating the border shutdown at Coutts, Alta., in early 2022.The Crown announced it will not call any further evidence, and the defence told court it won't call any evidence at all.The trial before a jury is now schedule...

Alberta's advanced education minister is rejecting concerns her government's proposed gatekeeping law would lead to political interference and jeopardize $500 million of federal funding for academic research in the province.A bill introduced this week by Premier Danielle Smith, if passed, would give her government veto...

The Alberta government aims to boost 911 response times by investing millions to replace aging emergency vehicles and through public-private partnerships for patient transfer services.To help reduce emergency response times, Budget 2024 provides an additional $25 million towards a total investment of $35 million over t...

The Office of the Child and Youth Advocate (OCYA) says investigative reviews for 48 young people who died or were seriously injured in the past year are now complete.The OCYA says 47 of the 48 are confirmed to have passed away, with one serious injury pending.Of the 48, 35 were Indigenous. At the time of their passing ...

Kathleen Ganley, who is one of five candidates vying for the leadership of the Alberta NDP, wants to see more debates added to the schedule. In a letter to the other candidates, including Naheed Nenshi, Jodi Calahoo Stonehouse, Sarah Hoffman and Gil McGowan, Ganley says that though events are scheduled for Lethbridge, ...

The 2017 Kenow wildfire left a major mark on Waterton Lakes National Park. Researchers at the University of Lethbridge have been monitoring plant life at the park to see how vegetation has responded since the blaze seven years ago."We know we have increasing fires on the landscape recently, so plant communities ar...

The RCMP is asking motorists to hit the brakes.In 2023, officers issued more than 60,000 speeding tickets in Alberta, including 761 for excessive speeding.Excessive speeding is when a driver travels at least 50 kilometres per hour above the posted speed limit.Alberta RCMP Traffic Sgt. Darrin Turbull says April is typic...

The Alberta government on Wednesday proposed a law that would allow it to veto any agreement struck between municipalities and the federal government.It is not unreasonable for Alberta to demand fairness from Ottawa. They have shown time and again that they will put ideology before practicality, which hurts Alberta fam...

On the Farm: This 2024 farming season we are following a local producer to take you inside the triumphs and tribulations of life on the farm..Nichole Neubauer, owner and operator of Neubauer Farms with her husband Mark, says there is optimism for a strong cattle market this year but is bracing for shortened grazing sea...

The Government of Alberta is standing by its neighbour to the east on the matter of gender pronoun policies.Saskatchewan's government recently introduced the Parents' Bill of Rights, which, among other provisions, will require parental consent for children under the age of 16 who want to use a different name or pronoun...

High school students in Alberta will soon have more options to learn as they transition to post-secondary education. The Alberta government has announced $4.45 million to expand dual credit program offerings in the 2024-25 academic year. Dual credit programs are optional, career-based courses that students in Grades 10...

Officials say Alberta's construction industry is leading the province in employment growth.The province claims investment in the industry is forming the foundation of strong employment growth, with 12,767 more Albertans employed in the sector in the first quarter of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023.Officials sa...

The Government of Alberta hopes that more innovations in technology will come forward to support the province's agriculture sector.They have announced a grant of $1.2 million over three years for the University of Calgary's Simpson Centre for the Alberta Digitalization Agricultural Program (Simpson Centre).Agriculture ...

Calgary Junior 'A' lacrosse players hit the Moose Recreation Center for an exhibition game yesterday afternoon. Two Medicine Hat Lacrosse Club alumni are vying for roster spots with the Calgary Mountaineers of the Rocky Mountain Lacrosse League.The Calgary Mountaineers took on the Calgary Raiders in a preseason exhibit...

While the majority of Albertans remain anxious about being able to pay off their debts, there have been some recent improvements.That is according to the latest MNP Consumer Debt Index.On the positive side of things, more Albertans perceive their current debt situation to be better now than it was one year ago (27 per ...

Brooks Junior High School will get a new building after 70 years spent at its current location through funding provided in the 2024 budget.Premier and Brooks-Medicine Hat MLA Danielle Smith was joined by officials Friday as she revealed her government's financial support for the school upgrade, one of 98 that qualified...

UPDATE (11:30 am Friday): The AESO has ended the grid alert. They are thanking Albertans for doing their part to reduce their energy consumption.Original StoryAlbertans are asked to do what they can to conserve electricity.The Alberta Electric System Operator (AESO) announced a grid alert for the province at 6:49 a.m. ...

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on Thursday requested Prime Minister Justin Trudeau call a meeting of the premiers for an urgent discussion about the federal government's carbon tax program and the possibilities of alternative options for reducing emissions."Albertans and Canadians are facing a cost-of-living crisi...

The governments of Alberta, Ontario and Saskatchewan are establishing a partnership to help strengthen recovery care.On April 3 and 4, 2024, the eighth annual Recovery Capital Conference of Canada in Calgary welcomed nearly 2,000 delegates from Alberta, the rest of Canada, and around the world.One of the major focuses ...