Patrick Brown to the Premier: Stop the Province-wide Cuts to Health Care

QUEEN’S PARK – Today during Question Period, Leader of the Official Opposition Patrick Brown highlighted health care cuts across the province and demanded that the Premier listen to the concerns of frontline health care workers.

“While the government has been busy attending secret $6,000 dinners, I have been touring hospitals and meeting with frontline workers across the province,” said Brown. “Just last week I was in Windsor. I was told firsthand the impact this government’s mismanagement has had in Windsor. 120 nurses are gone because of this government, and $20-million to Windsor General has been cut by this government.”

Windsor Regional Hospital is facing a $20-million budget shortfall, and is being forced to eliminate 120 nursing positions. Brown also referenced the 49 full-time positions and 12 transitional care beds which were cut from St. Joseph’s Health Care in London, and the 15 patient service centres laboratory services provider LifeLabs is closing.

For the past four years, the Liberal Government froze hospital budgets, and the most recent budget included only a negligible increase in investment. Hospitals across the province have had their budgets stretched thin and are being forced to lay-off staff, dramatically impacting the quality of patient-care their hard-working staff are able to provide.

The Liberal Government’s health care cuts are not limited to hospitals: Ontario doctors have seen a $815 million cut to physician services, Ontario’s seniors have had $50 million cut to physiotherapy services, and last year the government slashed $54 million of the Canada Health Transfer from the provincial health care budget.   

“We all know Ontario doctors have been without a contract for 2 years. During that time the Liberals have unilaterally slashed physician service fees by $815 million dollars,” added Brown. “How many $6,000 dinner tickets will it take for the Liberals to give Doctor’s a fair deal and stop the cuts?”