NORTH BAY — The Ontario Health Coalition is launching a fight against the Ontario government’s proposed Bill 60, which could be passed this week. The coalition wants to raise awareness of the issue, fight the Bill, and plan to launch a public referendum vote across the province to reverse the decision if passed.
“This legislation is ostensibly to facilitate the Ford government’s plan to expand private clinics. It replaces the Independent Health Facilities Act,” the coalition explained.
As for the referendum, polls will be placed throughout North Bay. A ballot available to fill out asks: “Do you want our public hospital services to be privatized to for-profit hospitals and clinics?” Check a box for yes or no, and the coalition will use this data to further protest the government’s decision.
Details about the referendum will be released at a future press conference but it is tentatively set for May 26.
So explained Henri Giroux, chair of the North Bay Health Coalition, at this morning’s conference to share the coalition’s concerns. He said that allowing more “for-profit medical clinics will divert resources from the public sector to the private,” and “higher pay” will lure health care workers away from the public system.
Bill 60 “lacks safeguards against this problem,” Giroux added, “and will give private clinics a potential recruitment advantage and diminish the pool of health care workers.”
“Canada has no surplus of health-care workers,” he said. “Poaching” medical staff for the for-profit sector will hit Northern and rural communities specifically hard, he added, as these areas traditionally have trouble attracting health-care professionals.
“This is concerning,” said Jen McCarthy, also with the Health Coalition. “People unable to access the care they need will end up taking on more debt, especially those living in disadvantaged or marginalized communities.”
She sees the potential for Bill 60 to further the divide between rich and poor, which could leave those in need “desperate to access health care.”
“Accessibility and equality,” matter to Canadians, noted Karina Tulisalo, a retired teacher and public health care advocate who joined today’s panel. She said this was true of both the health care and education systems.
“We are at a crossroads with our health care system,” Tulisalo emphasized, “so please join our campaign. We need you.”
David Briggs is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of BayToday, a publication of Village Media. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.
