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Finance Minister Robin Campbell said Wednesday the Tory government is strongly considering — on the advice of Albertans — bringing back health-care premiums to help heal its financial ailments.

But opposition parties roundly condemned the idea as a tax grab that would cause the most pain to low- and middle-income Albertans.

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Speaking to reporters, Campbell said new measures to raise money for the government are needed to deal with a massive revenue shortfall caused by low oil prices — and health-care premiums are the preferred option among members of the public.

“I’m keen on it because Albertans have said they want to do it,” the finance minister said Wednesday following a speech to the Chestermere Chamber of Commerce.

“Albertans have been very clear as I’ve gone across the province that they understand they should be paying something for health care.”

In 2009, the Progressive Conservative government under Ed Stelmach cancelled health premiums, which brought in about $1 billion a year to provincial coffers, to make good on a 2008 election promise to ditch the levy.