Minister of Health Fred Horne makes his way to the house as the session resumes at the Alberta Legislature in Edmonton, Alta. on Tuesday, March 5, 2013.
Alberta Health Minister Fred Horne says there is no way to recoup more than $7,000 in public money spent to send a former executive to a private U.S. centre for followup cancer care.
Horne says he finds the case of Michele Lahey's trip in 2007 to Minnesota's prestigious Mayo Clinic, in his words, "offensive."
The Opposition Wildrose released documents Monday that show the expenses claimed by Lahey, who was chief operating officer for the old Edmonton-area Capital Health region.
The documents show she was reimbursed for medical care at the Mayo Clinic, along with her hotel and food.
They also show Lahey enjoyed in-room movies at the Marriott Hotel, drank Perrier water and ordered desserts such as key lime pie and Crème brûlée.
Lahey, who now works for a private hospital in England, told The Canadian Press in an e-mail that the trip was not her idea but was pitched to her by her boss.