This weekend, protests are set to take place across the province, including one in Windsor.
The Ontario Health Coalition is organizing these demonstrations in several cities to voice opposition against the privatization of hospitals and healthcare services.
According to the Coalition, local volunteers aim to gather around 10,000 people to urge the Doug Ford government to halt the privatization of hospitals and clinics.
Citing CUPE’s Ontario Council of Hospital Unions, they point out that in 2020, the Ford government increased funding for private clinics to conduct cataract surgeries. Then in 2023, they passed legislation that made it easier for diagnostic tests and surgeries to shift from public hospitals to private for-profit clinics.
The government has argued that private clinics would alleviate wait times. However, data from the Canadian Institute of Health Information reveals that by 2024, only 66 percent of cataract surgeries in Ontario were completed on time-down from 72 percent in 2020.
With examples like a private spa contract at Ontario Place and millions spent on a private jet while subsidizing corner store alcohol sales, the Coalition warns that taxpayer money is being funneled into private contracts at the expense of necessary public care.
Natalie Mehra, Executive Director of the Ontario Health Coalition, emphasizes that this is an opportunity for communities to express their concerns.
“If we don’t rise up, if they don’t hear from people in the same way that they did about the private jet, you know, just call the MPPs, flood them with emails, and phone calls, and so on, and demand that they stop privatizing our public hospitals.. if we don’t do that, we’re going to lose them.”
She adds that this won’t be their last protest.
“We’re going to be doing a whole bunch of them this year, and we may come back again to the ones that we’re doing this weekend; but the goal is to get 10,000 people out to demand that the Ford government stops privatization.”
Mehra mentions they’ve received a positive response so far.
“There’s no one to stop it but us collectively-all of us-and it really matters that those who care about this stand up. So good response; but we need people to make overwhelming support for public healthcare and opposition to privatization visible.”
The protest in Windsor is scheduled for Saturday, April 25 at 11 a. m. outside MPP Andrew Dowie’s office at 5452 Tecumseh Road East.
Additional protests will occur throughout Ontario as well-in cities like Ottawa, St. Catharines, Kitchener-Waterloo among others.
