Health-care and affordability were the main focus on day 10 of the provincial election campaign, as most of the party leaders stated their plans to get more doctors and lower the cost of living in Ontario.
NDP leader Marit Stiles and Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie discussed their agendas on tackling health-care issues, including the province’s shortage of doctors, while Green Party leader Mike Schreiner spoke on how he’ll address food insecurity across the province.
Meanwhile, Progressive Conservative Party leader Doug Ford took another approach today, unrelated to health-care or affordability. Instead, he unveiled his plans to build a tunnel under Hwy. 401 to reduce gridlock and create more economic opportunities. Ford says in the wake of looming tariffs, now’s the time to boost the province’s economy by providing more jobs for Ontarians.
Read More
Here’s what Crombie, Stiles and Schreiner had to say today.
BONNIE CROMBIE IN THUNDER BAY
Crombie addressed the health-care system in Thunder Bay today.
She slammed Doug Ford for the “neglect” of the province’s health-care system, evident in overloaded emergency rooms, family doctors leaving practices, and patients being left with nowhere to turn, she described.
“Your access to a family doctor should not be determined by luck or geography. We cannot afford to let Doug Ford’s neglect continue,” she said.
“Every person in our province — no matter where they live — deserves access to a family doctor, and we will make that happen.”
Crombie outlined a plan to recruit and retain doctors in the north, where Liberals proposed they’ll get a family doctor for every person in Ontario. The plan also includes:
- Increase medical school seats and residency spots at the Northern Ontario School of Medicine, focusing on family medicine.
- Make it easier for internationally trained doctors to practice in northern and rural areas by expanding the Practice Ready Ontario program to license at least 1,200 highly qualified, experienced doctors.
- Invest $250 million over four years to retain family doctors who have left their practice or are nearing retirement.
- Create team-based care groups with doctors, nurses, social workers and staff to provide weekend support, and integrated home care for seniors and mental health services for children and youth.
“We’re stepping up by committing to bring 1,200 qualified, experienced doctors to practice in northern Ontario. Our promise is simple: a family doctor for you – close to home and when you need it,” Crombie said.
MARIT STILES IN SAULT STE. MARIE
Stiles headed to Sault Ste. Marie to unveil the party’s plan to tackle the health-care crisis, especially in Northern Ontario. She says that in the city, 10,000 residents have lost their family doctors.
“After seven years of Doug Ford and his conservatives, families are feeling it,” Stiles said.
“Closed emergency rooms, increased wait times, burned out and disrespected health-care workers and millions of Ontarians who have no family doctor. That’s his record.”
Stiles said to combat the overall 2.5 million people in Ontario without a family doctor, the NDP plans to introduce the Family Health Guarantee, a proposal to connect every resident with team-based family care.
“It’s a major shift that will make it easier and faster to get the care that you need,” Stiles said.
She assured that if elected, the NDP would immediately launch action for primary care from day one throughout the first 100 days.
Stiles said the NDP would fast track the applications for new family health teams, cut lengthy wait times with a central referral system, and add at least 3,500 doctors into the primary care system over the next four years. She also said Northern Ontario would reap the benefits, with 350 doctors specifically added in Sault Ste. Marie and a Northern command centre established to manage health-care capacity.
“It’s time that the people of the Sault and all across the North got the respect and the care that they deserve,” she said.
MIKE SCHREINER IN PARRY SOUND
Schreiner took his campaign to Parry Sound to announce how his party plans to tackle the affordability crisis. He says that food bank usage in Ontario has skyrocketed by 78 per cent within the past two years, and revealed his proposal to bring that figure down.
Schreiner says the Greens will cut income taxes for individuals earning under $65,000, and families earning under $100,000 a year. He says in order to make it happen, he plans to raise taxes on the highest income earning tax bracket to pay for low and middle income workers.
“This is part of our plan to fight for fairness,” Schreiner emphasized.
“It’s basically saying that those who have the most should pay a little bit more so those who are working hard just to get by can have a bit more to support their families during this cost of living crisis that we’re facing.”
Schreiner insisted that the move will put money in Ontarian’s pockets to help them pay the rent, put food on the table, and hopefully even make room for some disposable income to go on vacations.
He also stressed that Ontarians are feeling “abandoned” by Doug Ford.
“They see a premier wasting $2.2 billion on a mega-spa in downtown Toronto, they see a premier wanting to spend tens of billions of dollars tunneling under the 401, or wasting $40 million ripping up bike lanes,” he said.
“You’re seeing people facing an affordability crisis and they’re saying why is Doug Ford wasting all this money on things in the GTA that people in Toronto don’t even want?”
Voters head to the polls on Feb. 27.
