Ford ‘government continues to undermine the public system while promoting the expensive private for-profit system,’ says Nickel Belt MPP France Gélinas
Referring to a report released last week by the Ontario Council of Hospital Unions (OCHU), Nickel Belt MPP France Gélinas is urging the provincial government to stop squeezing Ontario’s health-care system.
Released July 31, Pushed over the brink: The escalating assault on Ontario’s hospitals uses the latest provincial data, OCHU said, to emphasize “the serious conditions that hospitals are facing due to Ford’s austerity policies.”
OCHU noted evidence of this agenda can be found in the “huge decrease” in working capital hospitals rely on for daily expenses, such as medical supplies and payroll.
“This figure has dropped from $2 billion in 2020 to negative $280 million at the end of last year,” OCHU stated. “As a result, many hospitals have had to borrow money just to get by.”
In their report, OCHU claims that the Progressive Conservative government is intentionally underfunding and understaffing hospitals to push for privatization of hospital services. Unions argue this has resulted in emergency room closures, longer wait times, and decreased quality of care.
“Doug Ford’s decisions have brought Ontario’s hospitals to their breaking point,” Gélinas said in an Aug. 4 news release. “For years now, frontline health-care workers, patients and hospital leaders have warned that chronic underfunding would lead to longer wait times, overcrowded emergency rooms and severe staff shortages. And now we’re seeing those warnings come true.”
The report indicates that health care costs are rising at six percent each year; however, the Ford government plans only a 3.3 percent funding increase this fiscal year.
Even as funding increases fall short of actual cost growth, OCHU points out that both cost pressures and demand will continue rising regardless of how much money is allocated.
“Hospitalizations have increased significantly over the last decade with two million additional hospital inpatient days,” OCHU stated. “The average length of stay per patient has also gone up by 15 percent.”
According to data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI), Ontario hospitals receive less provincial funding than any other province in Canada, according to hospital unions.
“Hospitals need six-percent annual increases just to maintain current services,” OCHU president Michael Hurley said in a news release. “The Ford government has reduced hospital budgets in real terms every year leading to fewer beds and staff amid significant utilization pressures from an aging population.”
The issue known as hallway health care or hallway medicine-where patients are treated in non-traditional spaces like hallways or bathrooms due to lack of available rooms-has doubled since Ford took office according to OCHU. This number went from fewer than 1,000 average daily hallway patients in 2018 up to nearly 2,000 expected by 2024.
A safe hospital bed occupancy rate is considered around 80 percent; however, Ontario hospitals frequently operate above 90 percent capacity-and Health Sciences North often exceeds even that level.
“Instead of investing in public hospitals people depend on, this government continues neglecting our public system while boosting costly private for-profit options,” Gélinas said in her Aug. 4 statement.
While hospital beds are full, operating deficits keep rising; according to union reports these deficits could surpass $400 million by 2025. Although Ontario already has some of the lowest staffing levels across Canada, budget cuts have led to over 1,300 job losses within just one year according to OCHU.
“Funding cuts are fueling the staffing crisis affecting Ontario’s hospitals,” Hurley explained. “We’ve seen emergency rooms throughout the province frequently forced into closures while wait times continue escalating everywhere you look. Patients are suffering-it’s unacceptable.”
At the same time, OCHU mentioned that the Ford government has expanded private health services further. While officials claim high wait times justify more privatization efforts, OCHU argues data actually shows otherwise-in cases like cataract surgeries here patients experienced a rise of twelve percent waiting times after private clinics were introduced.
“Privatization isn’t going solve anything. The research clearly shows when we privatize services not only does care quality decline but we end up paying far more while experiencing longer wait-times along with diminished access except for those who can afford it,” Hurley added.
The OCHU/CUPE (Canadian Union of Public Employees) advocates for a $5 billion boost in funding aimed at restoring capacity lowering waiting periods halting privatization pushes altogether
” Ontarians deserve quick high-quality healthcare nearby ” , Gélinas declared. ” Doug Ford & his administration must cease damaging our healthcare framework & start making necessary public investments focused on rebuilding capacity retaining personnel strengthening our community based facilities. Tommy Douglas initiated Medicare where attention prioritizes needs rather than payment ability ; everything’s jeopardized under this administration. ”
Lily Barnes , spokesperson representing minister responsible refutes MPP assertions.
” CUPE ’s allegations are completely mistaken ,” Barnes asserted through emailed response.
” Ontario takes pride having among largest publicly funded healthcare systems globally ; investing record amount $101 billion this year alone represents an impressive increase reaching roughly sixty-four percent since ’18 connecting even more individuals with timely assistance they require ” , she elaborated.
” Our regime raised allocations directed towards hospitalization sector setting new records increasing total investment exceeding fifty percent compared from pre-2018 levels.” she continued explaining further details pertaining recent initiatives established including committing over sixty billion dollars aiming kickstart development projects adding three thousand fresh beds statewide plus fifty newly installed MRI/CT machines gained forty-thousand additional physicians hundred-thousand nurses recruited post-2018 along support provided reducing surgical backlogs markedly boosting publicly funded same-day hip knee replacements four thousand two hundred sixty additionally five thousand eight hundred forty respectively alongside substantial sum three point four billion earmarked ensuring everyone receives primary care access before twenty twenty-nine” , concluded Ms. Barnes.
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