Nova Scotia awards $2-million homecare contract without competition

HALIFAX — The Nova Scotia government has awarded a $2.18-million contract without any competition for a consulting firm to help it deliver better homecare services.

Barbara Adams, minister of seniors and long-term care, said on Thursday the untendered contract is for consulting firm Davis Pier to “help us take home care to the next level by helping us work with our systems and improve them.”

The province disclosed the deal in an online database of public contracts that indicated Davis Pier would work on a “technology platform.”

Adams said after a cabinet meeting last week the government didn’t issue a call for bids on the contract because it wanted to move quickly on the file and the company chosen is “very familiar” with home care in Nova Scotia.

The Department of Seniors and Long Term Care did not provide a response to question on Monday about why it awarded the contract to Davis Pier without competition.

The minister said last week there are too many cancelled homecare visits, adding that she hopes Davis Pier will help the government make their systems more efficient.

The provincial government has been criticized in auditor general reports for spending taxpayer money without going through a competitive bid process.

Auditor general Kim Adair said in February the government had issued $2.4 billion worth of untendered contracts since 2019.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 20, 2025.

The Canadian Press