One ambulance company covers both sides of Lloydminster’s border. What those ambulances do on the Saskatchewan side, however, is not that company’s decision to make.
Medavie Health Services confirmed this week it is the primary 911 ambulance provider for all of Lloydminster. The company operates three units on the Alberta side under contract with Alberta Emergency Health Services, and two units on the Saskatchewan side under an agreement with the Saskatchewan Health Authority.
Samantha Hughes, senior adviser of communications and external relations for Medavie Health Services, provided the confirmation in response to questions from BorderPulse.
Operating across a divided city
Medavie has operated on the Alberta side of Lloydminster since September 2021. The Saskatchewan side came under its agreement with SHA in February 2024.
Hughes did not address whether Medavie’s current role came as a result of an arbitration process involving WPD. We previously reported on the dispute between SHA and WPD that preceded Medavie’s SK-side contract.
The WPD question – and the answer that wasn’t
Medavie effectively confirmed it does not control who gets dispatched on the Saskatchewan side – SHA does.
SHA told us last week that an arbitrator ruled in its favour, allowing it to terminate its contract with WPD Ambulance Lloydminster on March 10, 2026.
Under The Ambulance Act, the contract remained in effect during a 30-day appeal period. That period ended at 11:59 p.m. on April 10.
“The contract is now fully terminated,” SHA stated in a written response from David Freeman, lead media relations specialist for the Saskatchewan Health Authority.
SHA said it has made arrangements with Prairie Emergency Medical Services Inc. to provide coverage in the interim while a permanent contract is explored.
“A permanent solution and contract for the provision of EMS services for the area is currently being explored,” the SHA statement said. “There will be a deliberate transition and accountability process for a new EMS provider.”
WPD paramedics have not been dispatched to calls in Lloydminster since April 11 – the day after the appeal period closed.
Overdoses and a system under pressure
Hughes confirmed that overdose spikes and other serious events create strain on EMS resources in the region.
“Events of a serious nature that happen within a tight timeframe will always cause pressure in the system,” she said.
Medavie says it manages that pressure through what Hughes called “system status management” – a dynamic deployment model that draws resources from outside the city to manage short-term spikes in call volume.
What that model cannot do is conjure additional ambulances. With five units covering a city split between two provinces, there is limited room to absorb a surge – and WPD paramedics, trained and credentialled, remain on the sidelines.
Read more: SHA and WPD clash over ambulance contract in Lloydminster
