Image: Mike Vanden Bosch / Former Fraser Health CEO Dr. Victoria Lee (right) is pictured at a news conference in Chilliwack alongside former Chilliwack MLAs Dan Coulter (centre) and Kelli Paddon (back right).

By Mike Vanden Bosch

Ousted Fraser Health CEO

B.C. Conservatives slam massive severance for former Fraser Health CEO

Aug 11, 2025 | 9:55 AM

CHILLIWACK — A member of the B.C. Conservatives is slamming the B.C. NDP government after claiming that new documents reveal fired Fraser Health CEO Dr. Victoria Lee received a massive severance payment roughly 15 times what a nurse would get in similar circumstances.

According to a statement Monday morning, Surrey-White Rock MLA Trevor Halford says Dr. Lee received $609,335 in severance payments, as reported by The Tyee. Halford says he first pressed the Minister of Health for answers about the payout in the Legislature back in April. The Minister refused to disclose the figure, and Halford says its release confirms the NDP’s misplaced priorities.

“This government is rewarding failure at the top while cutting jobs lower down,” said Halford. “British Columbians are getting a masterclass in NDP priorities: golden parachutes for executives, pink slips for workers, and zero accountability for the mess they’ve made of our health care system.”

The $600K payout comes as internal memos obtained by The Globe and Mail reveal the Ministry of Health quietly ordered the Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA) to balance its budget months before publicly announcing a “corporate-spending review.” That directive has already triggered the elimination of 57 management positions and 61 vacant roles, with more cuts expected. None of this was disclosed when the order was made.

“While ERs are closing, waitlists are growing, and patients are waiting hours in hallways, the NDP expanded management ranks, blew health authority budgets, and then tried to clean up the mess in the dark,” Halford said. “British Columbians deserve to know how many more cushy executive payouts are coming, and how deep these cuts to the health system will go.”

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As Fraser Valley Today reported earlier this year, Fraser Health announced on February 18, 2025 that its board and CEO Dr. Victoria Lee came to a mutual agreement that she would move on from the health authority to pursue other opportunities, effective immediately.

Fraser Health said Dr. Lynn Stevenson had been appointed as interim president and CEO at Fraser Health, the largest regional health authority in British Columbia spanning Burnaby to Boston Bar.

Fraser Health issued a complimentary, gracious statement touting Dr. Lee’s role in guiding Fraser Health through the COVID-19 pandemic and a number of significant changes, like more than $15 billion in multi-year large capital investments, a system-wide digital twin and planetary health strategy. Dr. Lee was appointed as president and CEO in 2018.

“We would like to thank Dr. Lee for her leadership over the past six and a half years and on behalf of everyone at Fraser Health we wish her well,” said Jim Sinclair, board chair of Fraser Health. “We are grateful Dr. Stevenson will be joining the organization, and the Board will be working quickly to recruit a new permanent president and CEO as quickly as possible.”

In leaving, Dr. Lee said she had confidence in her successor and the FHA executive team.

“As I embark on an exciting new chapter in my career, I’m filled with immense pride and gratitude for the remarkable achievements we’ve accomplished together at Fraser Health over the past 15 years. Our journey has been extraordinary, marked by innovation and unwavering commitment to finding integrative solutions for our patients, families and communities,” said Dr. Lee. “The dedication of our 50,000 Fraser Health staff, medical professionals, and volunteers continues to inspire me daily. I have the utmost confidence in our exceptional leadership team and Dr. Lynn Stevenson in enhancing the health and well-being of our communities.”