Statement from Leader of the Official Opposition Patrick Brown regarding OMA Negotiations

The following is a statement from Leader of the Official Opposition Patrick Brown regarding the provincial government’s negotiations with Ontario’s physicians: 

“The Wynne Liberals have wasted billions of dollars through scandal, waste, and mismanagement. Now they’re trying to make up for it on the backs of Ontario’s patients, creating a permanent crisis in our health care system through continued cuts and drastic underfunding. 

The result has been a wave of hospital and health care cutbacks across Ontario, longer wait times, doctor shortages, overcrowded emergency rooms, shortened hospital stays, fired nurses, and a lack of home care services. These unilateral and shortsighted cuts only hurt patients. 

Having failed to secure a fair deal with doctors that would ensure stability in our health care system for patients, the Wynne Liberals have blamed doctors and created even more chaos through confrontation and misleading attacks on the medical profession. It’s clear the negotiation process used by the Wynne government over the past four years is irretrievably flawed. 

According to the Wynne Liberals, police, firefighters, and TTC are essential workers meriting binding arbitration. Given that Ontario’s doctors also provide an essential service – the delivery of high quality and reliable medical care – all options should be on the table to resolve the current impasse, including binding arbitration.”