OHC in the News

Health Coalition hosting virtual emergency summit

(April 5, 2022) By: Stephanie Chaves, Sarnia News Today Health Care Rally at Queen’s Park Oct, 2018. Photo courtesy of Shirley Roebuck. The Sarnia-Lambton Ontario Health Coalition is hosting an emergency summit Thursday. Chair Shirley Roebuck says the goal of the virtual event is to protect and improve vital health care services in the province. […]

COVID-19 testing remains limited during new wave

(April 5, 2022) By: Brigid Goulem, Kingston Whig-Standard (Print Edition) Experts are calling for expanded access to publicly funded COVID-19 testing as COVID-19 cases continue to surge across Ontario. On Dec. 30, 2021, the Ontario government limited the eligibility for PCR tests to those who are at the highest risk of severe outcomes and to […]

Ontario Health Coalition establishing a chapter in the Algoma District

(April 5, 2022) By: Rosalind Russell, MyEspanolaNow A new chapter of the Ontario Health Coalition is being established in the Algoma District. Photo provided by SSM-Algoma Health Coalition and used with permission. A Zoom meeting is in the works by the Ontario Health Coalition to establish a chapter in the Algoma District. Advocate Albert Dupuis […]

Guelph and District Health Coalition prepares to launch ‘Fight back’ campaign

(April 4, 2022) By: Joanne Shuttleworth, The Wellington Advertiser The Guelph and District Health Coalition held an “emergency summit” on April 3 to talk about how health care is under threat of privatization in Ontario. Screenshot from Zoom meeting GUELPH – People in Wellington County, Guelph, Halton Hills and Perth County need to know that […]

COVID-19 : la médecin hygiéniste de Toronto se veut rassurante, mais prône le masque

(April 4, 2022) By: Stella Dupuy, Radio Canada French La Dre Eileen de Villa encourage la population à porter un masque « autant que possible » dans les lieux publics intérieurs, même si cette mesure n’est plus obligatoire en Ontario. Bon nombre d’experts affirment que l’Ontario est en pleine sixième vague de COVID-19. Malgré cela, […]

Health coalition blasts private care, provincial approach; Minister’s press secretary says claims are false

(April 2, 2022) By: Luke Hendry, Belleville Intelligencer (Print Edition) Ontarians must press all political parties to choose public health care over privatization, advocates said during a Quinte-Northumberland summit on the topic. Thursday night’s online meeting was organized by the Northumberland Health Coalition – a branch of the Ontario Health Coalition – in partnership with […]

‘Brink of collapse’: Privatization of health care would be a disaster, coalition says

(April 2, 2022) By: Keith Gilligan, DurhamRegion.com – Susie Kockerscheidt/Metroland A bleak picture of health care was painted at the Durham Health Coalition session on the provincial government’s plan to privatize more of the health-care system. The Zoom session, held on Tuesday, March 29, attracted between 80 and 90 people, and outlined how the system […]

Summit aims to educate on private for-profit health care

(April 1, 2022) By: Tom Morrison, The Stratford Beacon Herald Heather Kavanagh, of Chatham, is shown with a lawn sign from the Ontario Health Coalition with a message against health care privatization. Area health coalitions are holding a virtual event on the issue on April 7. PHOTO BY HANDOUT The co-chair of Southwestern Ontario health care […]

Ford is a threat to public health care in Ontario

(March 31, 2022) By: Doreen Nicoll, rabble.ca Premier of Ontario Photography/Flickr Credit: Ontario Government / Flickr In the midst of an ever-evolving COVID 19 pandemic, who in their right mind, would privatize testing and stop tracking cases? That’s exactly what Ontario Premier Doug Ford has done. On Dec. 30, 2021, Ford announced very stringent guidelines restricting […]

Updated: coalition blasts private health care; minister’s office fires back

(March 31, 2022) By: Luke Hendry, The Intelligencer A nurse prepares medication in a Belleville General Hospital hallway in 2017. Advocates for public health care are raising the alarm about the risks of private care and calling for Ontarians to oppose what they say is shift toward privatization by the provincial government. PHOTO BY LUKE HENDRY […]

Has Health Care Left Brampton Behind?

(March 31, 2022) By: The Agenda with Steve Paikin Analysis Click here for original video

Tests PCR : la Coalition ontarienne de la santé dénonce une privatisation des services

(March 30, 2022) By: Andréane Williams, ICI Radio-Canada La Coalition ontarienne de la santé met en garde contre une privatisation du système de santé ontarien. (PHOTO : BEN NELMS/CBC) La Coalition ontarienne de la santé (OHC) dénonce l’octroi de contrats à de nombreuses entreprises privées pour effectuer des tests PCR de dépistage de la COVID-19. […]

Free COVID-19 rapid tests will be available until ‘at least’ July 31, Ontario says

(March 30, 2022) By: Rob Ferguson, The Mississauga News Free rapid antigen tests for COVID-19 will be available until “at least” July 31 as infection levels jump following the end of vaccination certificates and mandatory masking in most indoor public spaces in Ontario. Health Minister Christine Elliott’s office announced the change late Wednesday afternoon. Widespread distribution of […]

Ontario Health Coalition calls testing capacity issues bogus

(March 30, 2022) By: Adelle Loiselle, Blackburn News COVID-19 testing in a laboratory. (Photo from Pxhere) A new investigation by the Ontario Health Coalition alleges the Ford government could have continued widespread public testing for COVID-19 in December but chose instead to drive the public to private clinics. Executive Director Natalie Mehra calls it another […]

Privatizing COVID-19 testing ‘appalling,’ says Ontario Health Coalition

(March 30, 2022) By: Paul Forsyth, St. Catharines Standard In order to be tested for COVID-19, Ontarians are being forced to have to choose between using private for-profit companies and clinics and paying exorbitant rates, or going without testing, which risks spreading the potentially deadly virus, the Ontario Health Coalition says. The coalition, which held […]

‘Emergency summit’: Fight privatization, protect care, say Northumberland, Quinte health-care advocates

(March 29, 2022) By: The Peterborough Examiner Area health-care advocates say they’re hosting an emergency summit March 31 to fight the government’s “unprecedented healthcare privatization.” METROLAND FILE PHOTO Northumberland and Quinte-area health-care advocates say they’re holding an emergency summit to fight privatization and protect public health-care services. And the Northumberland Health Coalition is calling on residents to get […]

Health Coalition Hosting Public Talk

(March 28, 2022) By: Cobourg Now March 31, 7 pm on Zoom — advance registration is required Northumberland Health Coalition and Quinte representatives are holding a public talk to bring awareness to the issues of healthcare privatization and public health care services. According to a press release by the local organization, “The Ford government is […]

Health coalition to fight for public nursing homes, Sudbury meeting told

(March 25, 2022) By: Star Staff, Sudbury Star Melissa Wood, of UNIFOR, discusses issues of a report released by the Ontario Health Coalition in Sudbury, Ont. on Monday January 21, 2019. John Lappa/Sudbury Star/Postmedia Network With Queen’s Park doling out more beds to private nursing homes and a provincial election looming, the local chapter of […]

Health coalition to fight for public nursing homes, Sudbury meeting told

(March 25, 2022) By: Star Staff, The Sudbury Star Melissa Wood, of UNIFOR, discusses issues of a report released by the Ontario Health Coalition in Sudbury, Ont. on Monday January 21, 2019. John Lappa/Sudbury Star/Postmedia Network With Queen’s Park doling out more beds to private nursing homes and a provincial election looming, the local chapter […]

Area healthcare advocates host Emergency Summit to fight back against privatization

(March 23, 2022) By: This Week, The Peterborough Examiner Local healthcare advocates are hosting a virtual Emergency Summit March 31, which they say is to protest the province’s support to expand for-profit clinics and hospitals in Ontario. The event, co-hosted by the Peterborough Health Coalition, Kawartha Lakes Health Coalition and Haliburton-CKL Long-Term Care Coalition hope […]

Ontario government pushing for privatized health care

(March 18, 2022) By: Doreen Nicoll, The Hamilton Spectator In Ontario, the GDP per capita hit its historic high in 2019. According to Randy Robinson, Ontario director for the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, there is more money in the province than when Ontario created Medicare, built the 400-series highways or set up the community college […]

Health Coalitions across the province holding summits to fight privatization

(March 19, 2022) By: Aaron Mahoney, iHeartRadio Photo: CTV Health Coalitions across Ontario are holding Emergency Summits this month by Zoom to build the biggest fight-back they’ve ever mounted against privatization. The groups accuse the provincial government of planning to privatize healthcare, and their goal is to protect and improve public health care services. Natalie […]

Doug Ford’s government is quietly privatizing health care

(March 15, 2022) By: Nancy Olivieri, Michael Hurley, Natalie Mehra, Toronto Star Words matter. Recently, Health Minister Christine Elliott announced the expansion of private hospitals in Ontario. Missed this? So did many of us, possibly because of the words she selected: “we can let independent health facilities operate private hospitals.” That offhand reference to “independent health facilities” sounds […]

OP-ED: Doug Ford’s government is quietly privatizing health care

posted March 16, 2022

(March 15, 2022) By: Nancy Olivieri, Michael Hurley, Natalie Mehra Words matter. Recently, Health Minister Christine Elliott announced the expansion of private hospitals in Ontario. Missed this? So did many of us, possibly because of the words she selected: “we can let independent health facilities operate private hospitals.” That offhand reference to “independent health facilities” […]

‘We are seeing the creation of a two-tier system of health care in Ontario’

(March 14, 2022) By: Robert Williams, The Record WATERLOO REGION — A provincewide call to action on the alleged privatization of health care will see a series of emergency summits held across Ontario over the next month. Kicking off next week in Ottawa and running in 20 different cities across the province over March and […]

Local group to hold emergency summit in response to potential privatization of healthcare

(Mar 15, 2022) By: CityNews Kitchener File photo The virtual summit is expected to take place on April 5 and is being run by The Waterloo Region Health Coalition, an advocacy group aiming to bring awareness around the potential privatization of the Ontario’s publicly funded healthcare system. Jim Stewart is chair of the group and […]

Long banned in Ontario, private hospitals could soon reappear

(March 9, 2022) By: Linda McQuaig, Toronto Star In many ways, the long-running battle to save medicare from privatization is a battle for the soul of Canada. And it’s a battle that’s about to heat up. On one side are a large number of Canadians, for whom medicare stands out like a sparkling jewel — […]

Activists tell province ‘no’ to private health care

(March 3, 2022) By: Mike Baker, The Highlander A seemingly off-the-cuff remark made by Health Minister Christine Elliott in early February has seen several activist groups, including the Haliburton-City of Kawartha Lakes Long-Term Care Coalition, sound the alarm over fears the province may be favouring a move towards privatization of health care in Ontario. During […]

Kingston Health Coalition Launches Campaign to Stop Plans for Healthcare Privatization

(March 2, 2022) By: Jeff Green, Frontenac News DeRoche, CUPE Local 1974; Dave Doran, OPSEU local 462; Randy Robinson, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. As the Ontario healthcare system begins to deal with a long backlog of necessary procedures that were delayed as the result of the COVID-19 response, the Kingston Health Coalition is watching […]

‘Demand public health-care options be expanded’: Durham group pushing back against privatization

(March 1, 2022) By: Keith Gilligan, The Star Cathy Parkes spoke at a session hosted by the Durham Health Coalition, talking about her father, who died of COVID-19 at Orchard Villa in Pickering in April 2020. She warned more privatization in the long-term-care sector could lead to poor care for older ANDREW FRANCIS WALLACE/TORONTO STAR The […]

Thousands march in Toronto on May Day to highlight issues impacting workers

(May 1, 2022) By: Desmond Brown, CBC News Thousands of essential workers, union leaders and community organizations gathered Sunday afternoon at several locations in downtown Toronto, including Queen’s Park, for rallies calling attention to issues impacting workers on May Day. Gaibrie Stephen, an emergency physician who spoke with CBC News at Grange Park, said health-care workers have been […]

Local health coalition amplifies concerns about privatization of hospitals

(February 28, 2022) By: Santana Bellantoni, Guelph Today Screenshot of Michael Hurley, President of Ontario Council of Hospital Unions from Guelph Health Coalition press conference via ZoomSantana Bellantoni/GuelphToday The Ontario Health Care Coalition is launching a campaign to fight against for-profit privatization of hospitals. On Monday coalition members, including members of the coalition’s Guelph Wellington chapter, […]

Southwestern Ontario health coalitions speak against private health care

(February 28, 2022) By: Tom Morrison, Chatham Daily News Shirley Roebuck, chair of the Chatham-Kent, Sarnia-Lambton and Wallaceburg-Walpole Island health coalitions, top-left, hosts a press conference over Zoom about a campaign against health care privatization in Ontario Feb. 28, 2022. (Screenshot) Citing comments made by Ontario’s health minister, Southwestern Ontario health-care advocates are launching a […]

Kingston Health Coalition pushes back against health-care privatization

(February 28, 2022) By: Brigid Goulem, Whig Standard Local health-care advocates gathered virtually last week to push back against the increasing privatization of Ontario’s health-care system. The Kingston chapter of the Ontario Health Coalition hosted a public call on Friday, Feb. 25, to raise alarms about the growing privatization of the provincial health-care system under […]

Fighting privatization & austerity in Ontario healthcare

(February 27, 2022) By: Janna Klostermann, The Leveller A 22-year old woman seeking diagnostic testing at an Ottawa clinic couldn’t afford the $500 fee, so instead declined the tests. A man on a wait list for surgery was told he could have the “opportunity” if he wanted to pay to go to Montreal and “jump […]

Ford ramping up privatization of Ontario health care system

(February 28, 2022) By: Doreen Nicoll, rabble.ca Ontario spends $2,000 less per person per year than the average of the other provinces. 15 million people live in Ontario. That means the Ford government would need to spend an additional $30 billion each year just to be average. Instead, Ford is privatizing the Ontario health care […]

Health care advocates gearing up for spring election in Ontario

(February 25, 2022) By: Daryl Newcombe, CTV News London A local political push is beginning to make healthcare a top election issue. As the pandemic once again begins to subside, local healthcare advocates want to ensure the crisis it caused in front line medicine remains front and centre during the upcoming provincial election. The London […]

‘Privatization poaches medical professionals’: Local health coalitions sound alarm following comment by Health Minister

(February 25, 2022) By: Catherine Whitnall, NorthumberlandNews Local health coalition groups are working together to unmask the dangers of privatized health care. On Thursday (Feb. 24), members of the Kawartha-Haliburton, Peterborough and Northumberland health coalitions particpated in a virtual ‘call to action’ press conference to pull back the curtain on recent announcements made by the […]

Health coalition plans ’emergency summit’

(February 24, 2022) By: Jennifer Hamilton-McCharles, North Bay Nugget Randy Robinson, director of the Ontario Office, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives speaks to local media Thursday during a news conference hosted by the North Bay Health Coalition. Robinson spoke about the elimination of licence fees and stickers, which he says could affect the province’s health-care […]

‘We want to let them know privatization is not the way to go’

(February 24, 2022) By: Chris Dawson, BayToday Henri Giroux File photo. The North Bay Health Coalition is looking to organize an emergency summit on Tuesday, March 22 to address the concerns of more privatization within the health care system locally and across the province. to fight against health care privatization. “Anyone who cares about our […]

Peterborough area health coalitions speak out against private health care facilities

(February 24, 2022) By: Global News Analysis Local health coalitions are speaking out about private health care facilities’ roles. Their man concerns? More resources are being handed to private companies rather than the public health care system. Tricia Mason has the story…. Click here for original video

Health coalition raises alarm about increased privatization

(February 23, 2022) By: Maureen Revait, BlackburnNews CKHA official renewal of its urology services. April 7, 2021. (Photo courtesy of the CKHA). The Windsor Health Coalition is asking local residents to join its campaign against the privatization of health care. This renewed call comes after Health Minister Christine Elliott made reference to allowing independent health […]

Group raises alarm over Elliott’s “private hospitals” comment

(February 23, 2022) By: Ian Kaufman, TBnewswatch Health Minister Christine Elliott at a press conference on Monday, January 3. THUNDER BAY – An advocacy group is ringing alarm bells over what it says is a provincial plan to privatize core health care services. Pointing to an already expanded role for the private sector in long-term care, […]

Ontario Health Coalition, Cornwall chapter, push back on privatization

(February 23, 2022) By: Todd Hambleton, Standard-Freeholder Screenshot of Cornwall Health Coalition Zoom meeting on Wednesday morning.Handout/Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network jpg, CO The Cornwall chapter of the Ontario Health Coalition had a Zoom meeting/presentation Wednesday morning and took aim at what it calls the Ontario government’s plans of unprecedented for-profit privatization of health care. “We call this meeting […]

Ontario Health Coalition highlights problems with healthcare privatization

(February 23, 2022) By: Nick Laurin, Seaway News Ontario Health Coalition member and Cornwall City Council speaks during a Coalition press conference on Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2022. CORNWALL, Ontario – The Ontario Health Coalition held a Zoom presentation on Wednesday, Feb. 23 to raise awareness for their campaign to fight back against what they perceive […]

Health Coalition rallies against privatization plans

(Feb 21, 2022) By: Sara McCleary, Sault This Week Health-care workers opposed to more privatization in healthcare. PHOTO BY STOCK ART /Getty Images In response to changes by the Ford government to the province’s health care system, the Ontario Health Coalition and its regional affiliates are taking large-scale action. The OHC organized a total of […]

Long-term care and privatization of senior homes an overriding concern

(February 22, 2022) By: Rosalind Russell, MyEspanolaNow The Sudbury Health Coalition will be part of a province wide campaign to fight health care privatization and for urgently needed improvements in care under the public, non-profit health care system. Photo unsplash.com A Blind River man who has decades of experience in the medical sector says the […]

As other provinces and countries lift COVID restrictions, should Ontario follow suit?

(Feb 10, 2022) By: Ben Cohen, Toronto Star As countries in Europe and other provinces in Canada begin lifting COVID restrictions, some Ontarians may be wondering why they still have to live with them. Unlike in Alberta, Saskatchewan and some U.S. states and European countries, there are no immediate plans to do away with mask or vaccine […]

LETTER: Ford pushing two-tier health care, warns NDP official

(Feb 20, 2022) By: Letter to the Editor, MidlandToday Stock image MidlandToday welcomes letters to the editor (andrew@midlandtoday.ca).The following letter is from Elizabeth Van Houtte, president of Simcoe North NDP, who is concerned about the privatizing of healthcare. Apparently, Ontario is approaching a new period in this pandemic. Health Minister Christine Elliott announced on Tuesday that […]

Health-care privatization an election issue: Ontario Health Coalition

(Feb 20, 2022) By: Tyler Clarke, Sudbury.com The Ontario Health Coalition held a virtual media conference on Friday to indicate that they intend to make the privatization of health care an election issue in advance of this year’s provincial election Dot Klein, co-chair of the Sudbury chapter of the Ontario Health Coalition, is seen listening […]

Sudbury’s health coalition girds for battle

(Feb. 19, 2022) By: Colleen Romaniuk, The Star The Sudbury Health Coalition announced on Friday that it is participating in a provincewide campaign to oppose the privatization of Ontario’s health care system. The coalition joined its Sault Ste. Marie and Algoma partners for a video conference on Friday to discuss the impacts of privatization on […]

Health coalition calls privatization plan ‘mortal blow’ to health care system

(Feb 18, 2022) By: Brent Sleightholm, SooToday.com For-profit private facilities would take only healthier patients, says group. Leave those who require heavier care for public facilities Stock image The Sudbury Health Coalition has gone public looking for participation in a province-wide campaign to fight back against health care privatization in Ontario. The main speaker at […]

Ontario Health Coalition warns about more privatization of healthcare

(Feb. 18, 2022) By: Lyndsay Aelick, CTV News The Ontario Health Coalition continues to sound the alarm about healthcare privatization in the province. (Photo from video) The Ontario Health Coalition continues to sound the alarm about healthcare privatization in the province. Friday, the group held one of several zoom news conference events, focusing on the […]

Stop Ontario Tory plan to privatize healthcare

(February 18, 2022) By: Sid Lacombe, Socialist.ca Ontario Health Minister, Christine Elliot announced that the Tories are going to introduce private hospitals in Ontario. She said that more health services will be delivered by ‘independent’ health facilities to overcome a backlog in cases resulting from the pandemic. Those independent facilities are mainly for-profit. This is […]

Speakers Corner: Questions raised over OHIP card renewal policy

(Feb 16, 2022) By: Pat Taney, Toronto City News You may have heard the news last week, people with disabilities who can’t get a drivers license are no longer required to renew their OHIP cards in person. But another group of people say they aren’t being given the same leniency. Mainly those who fall into […]

Trillium Health receives largest-ever charitable gift to a hospital

(Feb. 15, 2022) By: Ben Cohen, Toronto Star Mississauga will become home to one of the largest hospitals in Canada in 2025, thanks, in part, to a historic multimillion-dollar charitable gift. The $105 million donation from the Peter Gilgan Foundation — the largest charitable gift to a hospital in Canadian history — will allow Trillium Health Partners to improve […]

Conservative provinces exploiting pandemic surgery backlog for privatization assault

(Feb 10 2022) By: Dan Darrah, The Breach “I knew as soon as I heard the voice of the doctor’s assistant,” Vicky Stewart recalls. In December, she got the call that her husband John’s surgery had been cancelled. “It was awful,” she says. John was diagnosed with Parkinson’s a decade ago and had been waiting […]

As other provinces and countries lift COVID restrictions, should Ontario follow suit?

Personal Support Worker shortage hits home for Collingwood family

(Feb 9, 2022) By: Jessica Owen, CollingwoodToday.com Photo by Matthias Zomer from Pexels In December 2020, Steve Bennett’s 87-year-old father came down with an E. coli infection after a routine biopsy that required hospitalization. He said his father was discharged from hospital to his home in Collingwood before Christmas that year, and was prescribed the assistance of a […]

‘Horrified’ family pulls 88-year-old Barrie man from long-term-care home due to ‘depressing’ living conditions

(February 8, 2022) By: Chris Simon, Simcoe.com Jennifer Duffield (right), with father Jim and sister Robyn. Jim, now 88, was pulled by his family from Woods Park Care Centre in Barrie due to the alleged living conditions at the facility. – Jennifer Duffield photo Jennifer Duffield couldn’t believe what she was seeing. When her family […]

What today’s health crisis means for tomorrow

(February 3, 2022) By: Trevor Hutchinson, The Lindsay Advocate The Ontario health care system is behind most other developed nations and most Canadian provinces in many areas. “If given the chance to start over, I don’t know that I would go into nursing now,” says Bonnie Kennedy, a Kawartha Lakes resident who retired from nursing […]

London coalition: Province must maintain health-care increases after COVID

(Jan 31, 2022) By: Norman De Bono Getty Images A London advocacy group wants the province to maintain health-care spending increases to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic, even after the crisis is over. The Ontario government increased its annual $69.8-billion health-care budget by about $8 billion to cope with COVID, and that funding must remain […]

COVID-19 outbreaks in long-term care facilities skyrocket, but deaths are a fraction of last year’s toll

(January 28, 2022) By: Xiao Xu, The Globe and Mail Flowers were placed on a lamppost outside Eatonville Care Centre in Toronto on Dec. 30, 2021. CARLOS OSORIO/REUTERS Omicron is driving exponential COVID-19 growth in long-term care homes, but the less-lethal variant is responsible for dramatically fewer deaths across the country than in previous waves. Experts […]

JAN. 26 2022-ONTARIO HOME CARE STAFFING SHORTAGE & INTEREST RATES IN CANADA

(January 26, 2022) By: Zoomer Radio ONTARIO HOME CARE SECTOR FACING A STAFFING SHORTAGE Libby Znaimer is joined by Jake Mitten, Owner and managing director of Home Instead Markham, Natalie Mehra, Executive Director of the Ontario Health Coalition, and Kerri Thompson, a caregiver to her mother who has Alzheimer’s disease. The home care sector in […]

Non-profit care homes deserve more beds: coalition

(January 20, 2022) Three resident home areas of Hogarth Riverview Manor, which is a not-for-profit long-term care facility in Thunder Bay, are currently dealing with COVID-19 outbreaks. With Ontario about halfway through allocating more than 30,000 long-term care beds, health-care advocates are concerned the majority of those beds are going to for-profit homes. Thunder Bay […]

VIDEO: Ontario Health Coalition slams province over ‘for profit’ LTC homes

(January 19, 2022) By: Kurt Black, TBnewswatch.com Analysis Click here for original video

Absenteeism causing ‘critical’ staffing gaps in province’s hospitals

(January 11, 2022) Ambulances at the emergency entrance of East York’s Michael Garron Hospital on January 10, 2022. PHOTO BY JACK BOLAND /Toronto Sun Health Minister Christine Elliott said about 600 hundred existing ICU beds and another potential 500 beds remain available. However, Health Ontario CEO and President Matt Anderson said the number of COVID-19 patients in […]

LETTER: Advocacy representative urges province to do better by seniors in long-term care

(Jan 5, 2021) By: SooToday Staff, SooToday.com Stock image SooToday has received the following letter to the editor from District 3 Algoma Retired Teachers of Ontario advocacy representative Marie DellaVedova who is concerned about senior care in long-term care homes in Ontario. A humanitarian crisis is unfolding here in Ontario, one that could have been prevented. If […]

Moving manor needs replacing

(January 5, 2022) By: Pam Wright, The Chatham Voice Donna Benoit wants her 95-year-old mother Loretta to stay put in Tilbury. That means attracting a new long-term care facility to the West Kent community as Tilbury Manor Nursing Home – where her mother lives – is closing with its 75 beds to be reallocated to […]

2021 Mayor’s honour list released

(December 31, 2021) By: Melanie Irwin, Blackburn News Sarnia Mayor Mike Bradley gives a state-of-the-city address to members of Sarnia’s Seaway Kiwanis Club. January 7, 2020. Photo by Melanie Irwin Sarnia’s Mayor has released a 2021 honour list which highlights the work of 13 individuals and groups. The mayor’s honour list was established in 1981 […]

Executive Director Natalie Mehra on Ottawa Morning with Robyn Bresnahan

(December 30, 2021) By: CBC Ottawa Morning Starting today, residents in long-term care homes can only get visits from two designated caregivers and won’t be allowed to leave for social reasons. Ontario Health Coalition executive director Natalie Mehra talks about the effect this will have on residents and families in long-term care. Link to radio […]

Executive Director Natalie Mehra talks about the new long-term care restrictions on CP24

(December 30, 2021) By: CP24 To protect the most vulnerable, long-term care homes are now under strict restrictions. Executive Director of the Ontario Health Coalition, Natalie Mehra, speaks on how this affects the people living in these homes, and how families are reacting. Link to video interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=etbkG74fW74

‘My wife and I have been doing the work of seven people’: Close contacts limit PSW availability for London, Ont. man

(December 28, 2021) By: Brent Lale, iHeartRadio Photo: Brent Lale It’s been a stressful and frustrating holiday season for Jeff Preston. The London, Ont. man with a rare form of Muscular Dystrophy requires around the clock care to function as a human being. “Going to the washroom, eating, getting food, and help getting rolled over […]

Province will renew Scarborough nursing homes where COVID-19 took scores of lives

(December 17, 2021) By: Mike Adler, Toronto.com Ontario’s Progressive Conservative government has approved upgrades and expansions for Scarborough nursing homes whose residents suffered devastating COVID-19 outbreaks. At Altamont Care Community, where 53 residents died of the disease in 2020, Long-Term Care Minister Rod Phillips on Dec. 10 announced a new nursing home on the property […]

Top 10 Winners and Losers of 2021

For the 14th year, Bob Hepburn reveals the winners and losers from across Canada, Ontario and the Toronto area. (December 15, 2021) By: Bob Hepburn, Toronto Star As another year of COVID-19 draws thankfully to a close, it’s time to look back on the people and events that made […]

Ontario PCs pass bill to reform long-term care in the province

(December 7, 2021) By: Charlie Pinkerton, iPolitics Bill 37, the Progressive Conservatives’ legislation that seeks to improve long-term care in Ontario, was tabled by Minister Rod Phillips, pictured in the Ontario Legislature on Nov. 5, 2020. (Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press) A Progressive Conservative bill to reform parts of Ontario’s long-term care system was passed by […]

Doug Ford’s government is betraying us on the long-term care of our most vulnerable citizens

(December 5, 2021) By: Ann Silversides, Toronto Star Crosses are seen in April 2021 outside an Ontario long-term-care home, placed as a reminder of those lost inside the facility as COVID-19 swept through care homes in 2020. RICK MADONIK / TORONTO STAR FILE PHOTO Many of us hoped that the cascade of horrific deaths suffered by thousands of […]

Coalition reports long-term care increasingly a for-profit service

(December 4, 2021) By: Francis Racine, Kingston Whig-Standard (Print Edition) A report by the Ontario Health Coalition released Monday revealed the majority of provincial licences to operate long-term care beds may well be allocated to private, for-profit facilities. What’s more, the Ontario Health Coalition, through its 72-page report titled “Public Money, Private Profit: The Ford […]

«Ford doit arrêter d’offrir des contrats au privé»

(Décembre 4, 2021) By: Émilie Pelletier, Le Droit TORONTO — Cela fait déjà plus d’un an depuis que la mère de Laura Yue a pris son dernier souffle, dans un établissement pour aînés à but lucratif, à Ottawa. Aujourd’hui, Laura Yue ajoute sa voix à celles qui exhortent le gouvernement Ford de cesser d’accorder des […]

Ford Gov. Awarding Thousands of Long-Term Care Beds to For-Profit Chains with Ghastly Records of Death and Suffering

(December 4, 2021) By: Niagara At Large Toronto— The Ford government has been awarding tens of thousands of long-term care beds to for-profit operators and 30-year licenses paid by Ontario taxpayers. The Ontario Health Coalition warned the Ford government is on the cusp of privatizing an entire new generation of long-term care beds unless public […]

Ontario Health Coalition calls for end to subsidizing private long-term care homes

(December 4, 2021) By: Ian Campbell, CTV News Analysis SUDBURY – In a passionate, virtual news conference Friday morning over Zoom, volunteers with the Ontario Health Coalition took a stand against for-profit long-term care. The group said the Ford government plans to award public dollars to private operators for long-term care beds. “Many of the for-profit […]

Province responds to scathing report, says it’s ‘fixing long-term care’ in Ontario

(December 3, 2021) By: Allan Benner, Welland Tribune Royal Rose Place in Welland, is one of the long-term care homes receiving government investment, cited in a report by the Ontario Health Coalition. JULIE JOCSAK / TORSTAR FILE PHOTO Facing criticism for investing in for-profit long-term care homes where residents lost their lives to COVID-19 outbreaks, Ontario’s Ministry of […]

Coalition to release report on LTC beds; Local briefs

(December 3, 2021) By: Sudbury Star (Print Edition) Ontario Health Coalition members will join health coalition representatives and families from Sudbury, North Bay and Blind River for a Zoom media conference on Dec. 3 to present a new report taking the provincial government to task over the privatization of long-term care. “Over the past year, […]

Long-term care increasingly for-profit service in Ontario, advocates say

(December 3, 2021) By: Francis Racine, Ottawa Citizen A stock photo of a long-term care facility residence. PHOTO BY HEIKO119 /Getty Images/iStockphoto CORNWALL — A report by the Ontario Health Coalition released Monday revealed the majority of provincial licences to operate long-term care beds may well be allocated to private for-profit facilities. What’s more, the Ontario Health […]

Families Who Lost Loved Ones In Long Term Care During The Pandemic Urge The Government To Stop For-Profit Privatization

(December 3, 2021) By: Pamela Vanmeer, Kawartha 411 June and her father George in happier times KAWARTHA LAKES-“Last I saw and hugged my Dad was on Friday, March 13, 2020. I arrived at Orchard Villa after the dinner hour for our usual Father-Daughter Friday date night. He loved music. I found him in bed singing […]

Coalition calls for more non-profit LTC beds in northeast (updated)

(December 3, 2021) By: Colleen Romaniuk, The Sudbury Star Photo illustration PHOTO BY METRO CREATIVE Update: This story has been updated to reflect that Al Dupuis is the former co-chair of the Ottawa Health Coalition. The Ontario Health Coalition (OHC) is sounding the alarm on the Ford government’s plan to allocate tens of thousands of long-term care […]

North Bay resident shares tragic story of grandmother’s death

(December 3, 2021) By: Jennifer Hamilton-McCharles, North Bay Nugget Henri Giroux, a member of the North Bay Health Coalition talks to local media about private versus public long-term care homes Friday. The Ontario Health Coalition recently released a report titled “Public Money Private Profit:The Ford Government & Privatization of the Next Generation of Ontario’s Long-Term […]

Health Coalition fighting against more privatized long-term care beds

(December 3, 2021) By: Chris Dawson, BayToday.ca Stock image Members of the Ontario Health Coalition and northeast region partners in North Bay, Blind River, and Sudbury hosted an online media conference to warn the province and the region about their fears that claim the province is and will be awarding thousands of long term care beds […]

The new fiscal federalism will change your life. But how?

(December 2, 2021) By: Armine Yalnizyan, Toronto Star Last week’s speech from the throne, delivered in Ottawa by Gov. Gen. Mary Simon, noted that long-term care needs attention. Given the pandemic’s revelation of the problems with elder care, that’s long overdue, Armine Yalnizyan writes. SEAN KILPATRICK / POOL/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES How will the business world change in […]

CBC Toronto News December 02, 2021

(December 2, 2021) By: CBC News (timestamp: 29:50) Analysis Click here for original article

Advocacy Group Calls For an End to For-Profit LTC

(December 2, 2021) By: CKXS 99.1 Kathy Cottingham with the Tilbury Area Action Team speaking during an Ontario Health Coalition news conference, November 30, 2021. A group of health care advocates is calling on the Ford government to do away with for-profit long term care. According to a recent report from the Ontario Health Coalition, […]

Eastern Ontario LTC statistics from Ontario Health Coalition report

(December 2, 2021) By: Francis Racine, The Intelligencer Maxville Manor. Photo on Saturday, August 1, 2020, in Maxville, Ont. Todd Hambleton/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network PHOTO BY TODD HAMBLETON /Todd Hambleton/Standard-Freeholder Arch Long-Term Care DTOC II – Orleans (owned by Arch LTC) has proposed to build 164 new spaces and upgrade 60 existing spaces. The home is intended for francophone […]

Kitchener-Waterloo Health Coalition’s Jim Stewart on for-profit long-term care homes receiving bulk of new bed licenses

(December 2, 2021) By: CityNews Kitchener Show Opening… But first (0:33); City building for the human spirit “The Joy Experiments” (19:42); Due to Years of Government Foot-Dragging, Ontario Won’t Become Accessible to 2.6 Million People with Disabilities by 2025, Violating Disabilities Act (42:38); For-profit long-term care homes receiving bulk of new bed licenses, report finds […]

Province slammed for investing in for-profit LTC homes where pandemic claimed lives

(December 1, 2021) By: Allan Benner, The Standard Julia Blushak said she and her brother Paul cared for their parents for decades, while they resided in a long-term-care home in St. Catharines — until the COVID-19 lockdown in March 2020 prevented them from visiting. The St. Catharines woman shared numerous horror stories about the care […]

Coalition Against Government’s For-Profit LongTerm Care Strategy

By: Bill Hornbostel Recently, the Ontario Health Coalition held a series of press conferences around Ontario to publicize their new report, “Public Money, Private Profit: The Ford Government & the Privatization of the Next Generation of Ontario’s Long-Term Care.” (Link: here). A recent conference featured speakers from Northumberland, Durham, and Kawartha Lakes, including Linda Mackenzie-Nicholas from the Northumberland Labour […]

For-profit long-term care homes receiving bulk of new bed licenses, report finds

(November 30, 2021) By: Leah Gerber, Toronto Star WATERLOO REGION — Jim Stewart is infuriated at the treatment of elders in Ontario and how the province plans to provide elder care for the next generation. “We are at a critical crossroads in long-term care, and I’m outraged actually at what is happening,” said Stewart, chair […]

Group wants province to shift long-term care focus away from for-profit companies

(November 30, 2021) By: Germain Ma, CityNews Long term care bed / Stock photo The Waterloo Region Health Coalition is calling on the Ford government to stop allocating the majority of new beds at long-term care facilities to for-profit companies. A new report by the Ontario Health Coalition finds that chains which were responsible for the worst […]

Protecting Seniors? Bill 37 and the Ontario Crisis in Long-Term Care

(November 30, 2021) By: SP The Bullet The ‘new’ Ontario Long-Term Care legislation, Bill 37 Providing More Care, Protecting Seniors, and Building More Beds Act, 2021, has been referred to the Standing Committee on the Legislative Assembly for public hearings. Here is the Ontario Health Coalition’s analysis of the new LTC (long-term care) bill. It […]

CBC Toronto News November 29, 2021

(November 29, 2021) By: CBC News (timestamp: 12:50) Analysis Click here for original article

Public Money, Private Profit: Ontario Health Coalition to release report on privatization of LTC beds

(November 27, 2021) By: Sudbury Star Dot Klein, co-chair of the Sudbury chapter of the Ontario Health Coalition, makes a point at a rally in Sudbury, Ont. on Monday October 4, 2021. John Lappa/Sudbury Star/Postmedia Network PHOTO BY JOHN LAPPA /John Lappa/Sudbury Star Ontario Health Coalition members will join health coalition representatives and families from Sudbury, North […]

Brampton residents may have to raise $125M for hospital expansion despite no timeline on 24/7 ER

(November 17, 2021) By: Ali Raza, CBC News The Ontario government announced in late 2020 that it would build a new hospital at the site of the Peel Memorial Centre, which would include 250 new inpatient beds. But when the redevelopment will get a 24/7 emergency department remains unclear. (Grant Linton/CBC) When his wife fell suddenly ill, Coun. Pat […]

One of the Ontario LTC homes hardest-hit by COVID-19 could soon be managed by non-profit

(November 11, 2021) By: Sara Jabakhanji, CBC News Camilla Care Community long-term care home in Mississauga, Ont., was among the hardest hit homes in the province during the COVID-19 pandemic with 68 resident deaths linked to COVID-19. (Paul Smith/CBC) A Mississauga long-term-care home that saw one of the most devastating COVID-19 outbreaks during the first wave of […]

All Hamilton long-term-care homes set to be fully air-conditioned

(November 10, 2021) By: Maria Iqbal, Spectator Reporter All Hamilton long-term-care homes are set to become fully air-conditioned as early as next year after a summer with multiple heat alerts. Seven local facilities are adding AC units to resident bedrooms, according to the Ministry of Long-Term Care. They are Extendicare Hamilton, Parkview Nursing Centre, Ridgeview, […]

Wait times remain long for long-term care in Oakville

(November 7, 2021) By: Mansoor Tanweer, Oakville Beaver Joyce Whitelaw’s husband Glen has been in long-term care in Mississauga since February 2019. He has Alzheimer’s, which has caused many complications for the local couple. When Glen was hospitalized for a seizure in October 2018, Joyce told hospital staff that “I could not bring him home.” […]

Consumer group takes issue with ‘new’ LTC rules

(November 2, 2021) By: Sara McCleary, Sault This Week Rod Phillips, minister of long-term care, promises more inspections and continued vaccinations at the province’s care homes. The Ontario government has announced new legislation for the long-term care sector, but critics say the legislation does not make any real changes to the existing Long-Term Care Homes […]

Ontario already had tools to penalize worst long-term care companies, including not-for profit with ongoing issues

(October 29, 2021) By: Miriam Katawazi, CTV News Toronto Multi-Platform Writer TORONTO — The Doug Ford government says it has allocated hundreds of beds to the five Ontario long-term care providers at the centre of a military report that shocked the nation more than a year ago with details of conditions and neglect. Holland Christian […]

Ontario long-term care homes could face $1-million fines under proposed legislation to improve accountability

(October 28, 2021) By: Karen Howlett, Investigative Reporter Globe and Mail Laura Stone, Queen’s Park Reporter The proposed Ontario legislation includes pledges to spend billions of dollars on hiring more workers for the chronically understaffed sector, doubling the number of inspectors to keep closer watch on conditions in the homes, and building new facilities to […]

Ontario company could get millions to rebuild nursing home where resident wasn’t bathed for weeks before dyin

(October 28, 2021) By: Miriam Katawazi, CTV News Toronto Multi-Platform Writer TORONTO — The Doug Ford government says it has allocated hundreds of beds to the five Ontario long-term care chains at the centre of a military report that shocked the nation more than a year ago with details of horrifying conditions and neglect. GEM […]

Ontario allocates beds to long-term care company accused of ignoring residents as they cried hours for help

(October 27, 2021) By: Miriam Katawazi, CTV News Toronto Multi-Platform Writer TORONTO — The Doug Ford government says it has allocated hundreds of beds to the five Ontario long-term care chains at the centre of a military report that shocked the nation more than a year ago with details of horrifying conditions and neglect. Rykka […]

Ontario will double the number of long-term care home inspectors

(October 26, 2021) By: TBSNewsWatch.com Staff The Ontario government says it will double the number of long-term care home inspectors within the next year. Long-term Care Minister Rod Phillips announced Tuesday that $20 million has been allocated to hire 193 new inspections staff by the fall of 2023. Phillips said this will result in a […]

Millions in taxpayer dollars earmarked for Ontario LTC company that allegedly left residents malnourished

(October 26, 2021) By: Miriam Katawazi, CTV News Toronto Multi-Platform Writer TORONTO — The Doug Ford government says it has allocated hundreds of beds to the Ontario for-profit long-term care chains at the centre of a military report that shocked the nation more than a year ago with details of horrifying conditions and neglect. Sienna […]

Ontario long-term care company accused of leaving residents ‘soiled in diapers’ will get millions for new beds

(October 25, 2021) By: Miriam Katawazi, CTV News Toronto Multi-Platform Writer TORONTO — The Doug Ford government says it has allocated hundreds of beds to the Ontario for-profit long-term care chains at the centre of a military report that shocked the nation more than a year ago with details of horrifying conditions and neglect. Southbridge […]

Oxford Health Coalition calls on government for improvements to long-term care

(October 14, 2021) By: Barbara Geernaert Health-care advocates protested outside Oxford MPP Ernie Hardeman’s Woodstock office last week, calling for better conditions in the province’s long-term care homes. The Oct. 4 protest, organized by the Oxford Health Coalition, was one of many similar rallies organized across the province by chapters of the Ontario Health Coalition. […]

Réforme des soins de longue durée : une association présente ses recommandations

(October 14, 2021) By: Stella Dupuy, Radio-Canada L’Association des soins de longue durée de l’Ontario (OLTCA) a présenté jeudi ses recommandations pour améliorer le système des soins de longue durée et le rendre plus transparent et redevable à l’égard des patients. Celles-ci surviennent alors que le ministre des Soins de longue durée, Rod Phillips, promet […]

Ontario government to build two long-term-care facilities in Oakville

(October 13, 2021) By: Mansoor Tanweer, Oakville Beaver Ontario Minister of Long-Term Care Rod Phillips, riding counterparts, Mayor Rob Burton and various health-care executives were on hand to announce the creation of two long-term-care (LTC) facilities in Oakville. The proposed facilities are expected to house 640 residents and will provide “culturally appropriate” services to the […]

‘Helpless and hopeless’: Front-line workers talk long-term care during COVID-19

(October 8, 2021) By: Julie Ireton, CBC News Crescencio Resendiz, a personal support worker for a Revera-run home, has not been back to work since contracting COVID-19 in January 2021. (Julie Ireton/CBC) As the Ontario government steps up efforts to recruit more long-term care workers, some current and former staff members say they’re still struggling […]

Field visits by phone, locked-up PPE flagged by nursing home staff in 1st wave, documents show

(October 7, 2021) By: Julie Ireton, CBC News Anaya Toelly, Stephanie Kocielski and Betty Yakimenko have family members at Madonna Care Community in Orleans, Ont., which experienced a COVID-19 outbreak early in the pandemic. They recently attended a rally in Ottawa to raise awareness about a number of issues with the long-term care system. (Jean […]

“Rise Up For Long-Term Care” Rallies Call for Government Action to Protect Seniors in Care

(October 5, 2021) By: Workers’ Forum Online Supplement of the Marxist-Leninist Queen’s Park, October 4, 2021 Rallies were held in 18 Ontario cities, including at Queen’s Park on October 4, the first day of the fall sitting of the Ontario Provincial Legislature. Organized by the Ontario Health Coalition (OHC), the aim of the “Rise Up […]

Protesters rally to tell premier long-term care has to be not-for-profit

(October 5, 2021) By: Ian Campbell, CTV News Northern Ontario Analysis SUDBURY – A small crowd gathered at Sudbury’s Civic Cemetery on Monday calling on Premier Doug Ford to take the profit out of long-term care in the province. “We’re here to demand immediate action to fast track improving healthcare to four hours of care, […]

Understaffed long-term care homes nothing new: Retired PSWs

(October 5, 2021) By: Ellwood Shreve, Sentinel Review Woodstock Retired personal support workers Julie Dorner (left) and Kim Brown spoke about the shortage of workers in long-term care homes that has been going on long before the COVID-19 pandemic arrived, during a protest by the Chatham-Kent chapter of the Ontario Health Coalition in front of […]

Health Coalition Urges Ontario Government To Act On Promised Improvements To Long Term Care

(October 5, 2021) By: Pamela Vanmeer, Kawartha 411 KAWARTHA LAKES-The Kawartha Lakes Health Coalition held a long-term care protest at Laurie Scott’s office on Monday in conjunction with Ontario Health Coalition’s province-wide protest. More than 4,000 residents living in Long Term Care died from Coronavirus, many more from related illnesses according to the coalition. They […]

Ontario Health Coalition holds province-wide protests, decries state of long-term care

(October 4, 2021) By: Darryn Davis, Global News Protestors calling on the provincial government to do more to improve Long Term Care in Ontario. Global Kingston On the same day as the Ontario government’s throne speech, about 50 protesters set up at the high-density traffic intersection of Princess and Concession streets. The protest, organized by the […]

‘We have not forgotten’: Ontario Health Coalition continuing call for long-term care home reforms

(October 4, 2021) By: Sawyer Bogdan, Global News Around 17 people gathered outside MPP, Jeff Yurek’s office in St. Thomas to advocate for changes to long-term care on Oct. 4, 2021. Andrew Graham / Global News The Ontario Health Coalition (OHC) is advocating for better standards in long-term care and an end to for-profit homes […]

‘This isn’t working’

(October 4, 2021) By: Colleen Romaniuk, Cochrane Times Post Alessandro Presenza, of Hands of Hope, makes a point at a rally organized by the Sudbury chapter of the Ontario Health Coalition on Monday. PHOTO BY JOHN LAPPA/SUDBURY STAR The Sudbury branch of the Ontario Health Coalition held a protest Monday to demand immediate action from the […]

Oakville residents take part in provincewide rally for long-term care

(October 4, 2021) By: Mansoor Tanweer, The Star Some 50 Oakville residents took to the streets to raise awareness about the ongoing long-term-care crisis in the province. “Our goal is to make the public aware that the situation … it’s still a very important issue and conditions have not improved in long-term care,” said Anne […]

Protesters call for improved long-term care

(October 4, 2021) By: CTV News Kitchener Analysis On October 4, the Waterloo Health Coalition joined forces with local health coalitions across Ontario to hold a protest on the opening day of the legislature to protest the Ford government’s total failure to get care levels up to anything safe or acceptable in long-term care. Click here […]

Two separate protests outside Queen’s Park as MPPs return for new legislative session

(October 4, 2021) By: Mike Walker, CTV News Toronto Analysis TORONTO — Calls for long-term care reform, as well as better wages for nurses, echoed outside the Queen’s Park on Monday during two separate protests as MPP’s returned to work for the start of a new legislative session. As the Ford government delivered it’s throne […]

OHC Increasing Calls For Better LTC

(October 4, 2021) By: CKXS 99.1 FM Even though he is no longer a member of the governing Tory caucus, Rick Nicholls will be the target of a protest today. The Ontario Health Coalition is looking to keep pressure on the Ford government’s handling of the long term health care industry. The group is calling […]

COVID-19: Ottawa reports 31 new cases; any new pandemic measures would be localized and targeted, says throne speech

(October 4, 2021) By: Taylor Blewett, Ottawa Citizen The ultimate goal, according to the throne speech delivered in the legislative chamber Monday, is “avoiding future lockdowns.” File photo/ Proof of vaccination required to enter a restaurant. PHOTO BY MARIO TAMA /Getty Images Ontario MPPs are back at Queen’s Park, the province is heading into a winter when […]

Protesters fight for more Long Term Care Home support

(October 4, 2021) By: Chris Dawson, Bay Today A small group of about a dozen protesters gathered outside Vic Fedeli’s constituency office to express their concern over long-term care in Ontario. Henri Giroux, president of the North Bay & District Labour Council, led the North Bay event, which is one of a number of organized protests […]

Protest calls for greater accountability in long-term care

(October 4, 2021) By: Jennifer Hamilton-McCharles, Northern News Henri Giroux, a member of the North Bay Health Coalition, speaks to media and supporters during a small rally, Monday, outside Nipissing MPP Vic Fedeli’s office. Jennifer Hamilton-McCharles/The Nugget COVID-19 opened the country’s eyes to the problems in long-term care homes, but those problems have been there […]

Ontario Health Coalition’s Cornwall chapter not happy with state of LTCs

(October 4, 2021) By: Francis Racine, Gananoque Reporter About 40 protesters came together on Monday in front of MPP Jim McDonell’s office in order to demand change in the long-term care sector Photo taken on Monday October 4, 2021 in Cornwall, Ont. Francis Racine/Cornwall Standard-Freeholder/Postmedia Network PHOTO BY FRANCIS RACINE /Francis Racine/Standard-Freeholder This article was edited in […]

Health watchdog uses throne speech to call for immediate improvements in long-term care

(October 4, 2021) By: Brian Bicknell, CTV News London ST. THOMAS, ONT. – A provincial health care watchdog used the occasion of Monday’s Ontario government throne speech to point out what it says are deficiencies in the long-term care system. The Ontario Health Coalition held demonstrations outside MPP offices across the province Monday, including PC […]

NATALIE MEHRA – ONTARIO HEALTH COALITION EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR INTERVIEW WITH MATT HOLMES NEWSTALK 610

(October 3, 2021) By: Matt Holmes, Newstalk 610 CKTB Ontario Health Coalition executive director Natalie Mehra speaks to Matt Holmes of Newstalk 610 CKTB about recent long-term care announcements, the current state of long-term care and the upcoming protests being held across the province. Click here for audio interview

Long-term care protest Monday in Sudbury

(October 3, 2021) By: The Sudbury Star Photo illustration. PHOTO BY TONY CALDWELL /POSTMEDIA NETWORK Saying the Ford government has failed to address concerns about long-term care, the Ontario Health Coalition is calling for cross-province protests on Monday when the Ontario Legislature is scheduled to open. In Sudbury, that protest is scheduled for the front gate of […]

PROVINCE MAKING VACCINES MANDATORY FOR LONG-TERM CARE STAFF

(October 1, 2021) By: Brett Glover, Barrie360 COVID-19 vaccines will soon be mandatory in all long-term care homes across Ontario. Long-Term Care Minister Rod Phillips announced on Friday that vaccines will be mandatory for all in-home staff, support workers, students, and volunteers within long-term care homes by November 15, unless there is a valid medical […]

CBC Radio’s All in a Day with Alan Neal and the Ottawa Health Coalition

(September 13, 2021) By: Alan Neal, CBC Radio CBC Radio’s All In A Day invited two active members of the Ottawa Health Coalition to identify what they want candidates to address about long term care in this election? With her mom currently in LTC, Betty Yakimenko (4:24 mark) identifies staffing shortages, poor wages and lack of […]

BRAUN: Families fight licence renewal for Orchard Villa LTC home

(September 6, 2021) By: Liz Braun, Toronto Sun Diane Colangelo visits her 86-year-old mother Patricia through a window at the Orchard Villa long-term care home in Pickering. PHOTO BY VERONICA HENRI /Toronto Sun/Postmedia Orchard Villa is the hellhole nursing home in Pickering where 70 residents died of COVID-19. Families of Orchard Villa were justifiably horrified to learn […]

Private or public? Advocate urges candidates to support public long-term care system

(September 3, 2021) By: Tyler Clarke, Sudbury.com Reporter Advocating for stronger public services, Dot Klein attended Tuesday’s all-candidates debate at Royal Canadian Legion Branch 76 to see which federal candidates are on board. Klein has been working as a registered nurse for 57 years and is co-chair of the Sudbury chapter of the Ontario Health […]

Fight against license extension for Orchard Villa in Pickering continues

(September 1, 2021) By: Durham Radio News The company that owns the Orchard Villa long-term care home in Pickering is applying for a license extension. The proposal is for a new 30-year license to rebuild and an 87-bed expansion to Southbridge, the for-profit long-term care home operator. News of the license renewal has been met […]

Election debate on seniors issues in Sudbury

(August 31, 2021) By: Alana Everson, CTVNewsNorthernOntario.ca Videojournalist Sudbury – Issues facing seniors in the Sept. 20 federal election were the focus of a debate in Sudbury Tuesday. The groups CARP and Friendly to Seniors Sudbury hosted the event. “Both are advocacy groups for seniors and, as most of us know, there are more seniors […]

‘There is just so much wrong’: Penetanguishene residents upset with state of long-term-care homes in Ontario

(August 25, 2021) By: Andrew Mendler, Midland Mirror Reporter Don Copping and Fran Moreau are frustrated over the province’s handling of long-term-care homes and say the system needs to change. The two Penetanguishene residents will be heading down to Queen’s Park on Sept. 13 to join a protest of Ontario’s long-term-care homes organized by the […]

Letter to the editor: Healthcare funding with strings attached

(August 23, 2021) By: Ben Lefebvre, BayToday We must demand that the next federal government commit to implementing national standards for long-term care across Canada. This would require providing adequate funding levels to the provinces in order to leverage the cooperation required to protect our most vulnerable population, our seniors. The provinces, in turn, must […]

Revera could lay off PSWs and RPNs at Hallowell House despite pandemic

(August 23, 2021) By: Sue Capon, County Live By Sue Capon The sound of horns blaring in support of workers holding an information picket near Hallowell House nursing home Monday was almost deafening at times, as they stood in blazing heat and humidity protesting expected layoffs in the pipeline. Staff hailed as heroes during the […]

Doug Ford’s Government Wants to Privatize Parts of the Health Care System To Reduce COVID-19 Surgical Backlog

(August 19, 2021) By: PressProgress The Ford government’s plan to help Ontario’s hospitals clear their surgery backlog involves further privatizing parts of the province’s health care system. One of the Ford government’s consistent responses to COVID-19 has included measures aimed at saving space in Ontario’s long-underfunded hospitals by cancelling “non-essential” or elective surgical procedures. After […]

Head of Alberta Health Coalition says, “Prime Minister Trudeau has repeatedly made empty promises”

(August 19, 2021) By: NetNewsLedger Health Coalitions across Canada are putting all federal political parties on notice. The federal government could have already set real national standards for long-term care in legislation or an emergency federal-provincial-territorial funding accord with sufficient funding attached to leverage real change. Instead, nothing has happened. Canadians expect all political parties […]

Ontario Health Coalition Executive Director Natalie Mehra Interview with Dave Glover of Northumberland 89.7

(August 18, 2021) By: Drive Time with Dave Glover, Northumberland 89.7 FM radio Ontario Health Coalition executive director Natalie Mehra spoke with Northumberland 89.7 FM radio’s Dave Glover about health care and long-term care in Ontario, as well as the upcoming election. Click here for full interview

Harris addresses for-profit long-term care, tees off on federal oversight

(August 18, 2021) By: Stu Campaigne, BayToday News Reporter CALLANDER, Ont. — As is tradition, Mike Harris helped tee off the 23rd Annual Osprey Links Charity Golf Gala, Wednesday, and took a few minutes before heading out on the course to share his views on a few hot-button subjects, including the state of long-term care. Harris […]

Tilbury Manor worth saving

(August 4, 2021) By: The Chatham Voice Editor: The private, for-profit business that owns the Tilbury Manor LTC has received a new 30-year licence and permission to move the 75-bed home from Tilbury to Belle River, where another 80 new beds will be added. Permission was granted by the Ontario government. Ford’s government has been […]

Coverage of Southwest Ontario Health Coalitions Press Conference – CTV News London at 6

(July 29, 2021) By: CTV News London The Ontario government has been quietly awarding new 30-year licenses and thousands of new and rebuilt bed allotments to long-term care homes. The majority of licenses have gone to for-profit, private homes rather than public, non-profit homes despite the woeful record of the for-profit long-term care industry during […]

‘It’s changed how I live my life’: Grace Villa worker still recovering months after COVID landed her in ICU

(July 28, 2021) By: Maria Iqbal, The Hamilton Spectator Union calls for help In Ontario, more than 7,200 COVID-19 cases have appeared in health-care workers linked to long-term care from Jan. 15, 2020, to July 26, 2021. Ten have died. But that’s not the full story. “One of the untold stories of the pandemic is […]

Ontario Health Coalition calling for more consultation about proposed licence renewal at Orchard Villa

(July 27, 2021) By: DurhamRadioNews.com The Ontario Health Coalition has sent an open letter to Long-Term Care Minister Rod Phillips, calling for more public consultations on the proposed 30-year licence extension for Orchard Villa LTC home in Pickering. They say officials have neglected to consider the track record of the home’s operator, Southbridge Care Homes, […]

Families fight against licence renewal for LTC home that saw one of worst COVID-19 outbreaks in Ontario

(July 27, 2021) By: CBC News, with files from Talia Ricci The Ontario government is considering renewing the licence for a for-profit long-term care home that saw one of the worst outbreaks in the province and was the subject of a scathing military report in 2020. The Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care held […]

Kingston Health Coalition calls on Ford to ‘correct critical condition’ in LTC

(July 23, 2021) By: Yona Harvey, Kingstonist About a dozen demonstrators gathered at the corner of Sir John A. Macdonald and Princess streets Thursday, Jul. 22, 2021 to raise awareness of the “critical condition” in long-term care (LTC) homes. “The Ford government has to take firm action to correct the critical condition [in long-term care […]

‘Super fishy’: Donations linked to developer topped $50,000 ahead of Ford fundraiser

(July 16, 2021) By: Jessica Smith Cross, QP Briefing Records of donations to the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario last month show the party benefited from what appears to be more than $50,000 in contributions linked to a single developer, in tickets to a single fundraiser. It’s a revelation that an opposition critic is calling […]

‘Devastating to watch’: Private long-term-care homes have seen some of Ontario’s worst death rates – but Doug Ford’s new funding set them up for decades of profits

(July 15, 2021) By: Richard Warnica, Toronto Star “Every public policy decision that has been made during the pandemic aligns w/ the interests of the for-profit LTC industry.” – Exec dir Natalie Mehra Click here for original article (Note: accessible only to Toronto Star subscribers)

‘No senior deserves to be neglected like my mother’: Families rally against Orchard Villa license renewal, expansion

(July 15, 2021) By: Reka Szekely, DurhamRegion.com Under a hot sun, families impacted by a devastating COVID-19 outbreak at Pickering’s Orchard Villa Long Term Care home made an impassioned case that the nursing home should not be eligible for license extension or additional beds. Roughly 100 people attended a July 14 protest outside the facility […]

They were the epicentre of the COVID-19 pandemic: So how did Ontario’s for-profit long-term-care homes manage to secure so many of their business goals?

(July 15, 2021) By: Richard Warnica As part of a series on how businesses have swayed the decisions made by the Ford government during the COVID-19 crisis, the Star created a database of every active lobbying registration in Ontario in March 2021, a year into the pandemic. The results revealed a clear pattern. Among the […]

CBC Toronto News July 14, 2021

(July 14, 2021) By: Lorenda Reddekopp, CBC News Heartbreaking stories were told at the Ontario Health Coalition’s Orchard Villa protest. “She was dehydrated, scared, could barely get to the window. We brought her in here at 105 lbs and she passed away at 68 lbs.” – Diane Colangelo, whose mother was a resident. Cathy Parkes, […]

Protest over long-term care home licence renewal

(July 14, 2021) By: City News “The conditions were beyond what is morally acceptable on any level in our society & we just can’t believe that the Ford gov’t would consider giving a new license & expansion to this for-profit #LTC home.” – Exec dir Natalie Mehra at yesterday’s protest Click here for video coverage

Protestors cry “shame” outside Pickering’s Orchard Villa, call for denial of licence renewal

(July 14, 2021) By: Durham Radio News “She got COVID on April 19. She tested negative 2 or 3 weeks later, but with the effects of COVID, the dehydration & the neglect altogether she never sustained normal life again.” – Sherri Zielinski, who lost her mother in Orchard Villa. Click here for original article

Dozens protest expansion of Orchard Villa LTC

(July 14, 2021) By: CP24 “The province has to set the tone and support [non-profits] to build & re-build #LTC homes.” – Exec dir Natalie Mehra on what needs to be done in LTC moving forward. CP24 Evening: Continued coverage of the Orchard Villa protest and a discussion with Ontario Health Coalition board member Dr. […]

Protesters call on government to deny licence extension for notorious long-term care home

(July 14, 2021) By: Jessica Smith Cross, QP Briefing The daughter of 86 yr old Patricia Crump described how her mom wasted away at Orchard Villa before her death & was last heard screaming into the phone for help. “Just screaming in pain with nobody to help her,” said Diane Colangelo. “Nobody to help her.” […]

Protest against license renewal planned outside Pickering’s Orchard Villa

(July 13, 2021) By: DurhamRadioNews.com Activists and families are planning a protest near Orchard Villa, a Pickering long-term care home that was ravaged by COVID-19. On Wednesday at noon, protestors are expected outside the Valley Farm Road facility. The groups are opposed to the Ford government’s proposal to grant the home’s owners a 30-year license […]

Seniors in Ontario’s long-term care homes suffering from decades-old systemic failures

(July 12, 2021) By: Tamara Ugolini Since publishing my report on Pinecrest Nursing Home in Bobcaygeon, Ont., the response has been overwhelming. I knew that long-term care needed help, but I didn’t realize how tragic and deep-seated the issues are. What’s happening in long-term care is appalling. My continuing investigation is confirming what advocacy groups, like […]

Fight Back with Libby Znaimer: Henry Dundas, Home Care, & Going Back to Work

(July 8, 2021) ONTARIO NDP COMMITS TO CAREGIVER BENEFIT PROGRAM Libby Znaimer is joined by NDP MPP France Gélinas (Nickel-Belt) who is the critic for health, and Natalie Mehra, Executive Director of the Ontario Health Coalition. In the news: the Ontario NDP says they would commit to a Caregiver Benefit Program. Andrea Horwath, the NDP […]

Grace Villa worker struggles with PTSD months after Hamilton’s worst COVID outbreak

(July 6, 2021) By: Maria Iqbal, Hamilton Spectator Reporter Grace Villa’s operator said the home did what it could to support staff and residents during this time. “With any issue or episode that has a dramatic impact on our staff, we got staff in as quickly as we could,” said Mary Raithby, CEO of APANS Health […]

Premier Doug Ford says ‘it’s a guarantee’ to keeping pay increase for personal support workers

(July 5, 2021) By: Holly McKenzie-Sutter, Canadian Press Reporter Ontario Premier Doug Ford promised Monday to maintain a wage increase brought in for personal support workers during the pandemic but didn’t say how or when his government would back up the pledge. The workers who staff long-term care homes and similar facilities were given a temporary […]

Doug Ford commits to making top-up pay permanent for Ontario PSWs

(July 5, 2021) By: Matthew Bingley, Global News In a push to recruit more personal support care workers, Premier Doug Ford said on Monday he is committed to making the $3 pandemic top-up for pay permanent. But advocates and his opposition critics say that isn’t enough to recruit enough new employees, and should’ve been done […]

Health coalitions disappointed by lack of action by MPPs regarding long-term-care crisis

(June 28, 2021) By: Catherine Whitnall, Peterborough Examiner Reporter When it comes to conditions in area long-term-care facilities, it’s not just a case of being in the same boat, but rather the same storm as those across the province. The information comes as no surprise to three local health coalitions that recently presented results from […]

Health Coalitions Survey LTC workers

(June 24, 2021) By: John Draper, Cobourg News Blog Reporter Three groups have teamed up to survey Long Term Care workers to uncover deficiencies. Using the results, they are now lobbying the Provincial Government to make improvements. Their Press Conference on Tuesday, June 22 was on Zoom and recorded on Facebook with the video plus […]

Peterborough Health Coalition critical of Ontario government’s handling of long-term-care

(June 23, 2021) By: Freq 90.5/Oldies 96.7 News Staff Brady says there’s a lot of problems from before COVID that are still unresolved, as well as new problems that came from the pandemic. Click here for accompanying video

Province’s response to LTC questions ‘pretty pathetic’ says local advocate

(June 23, 2021) By: Mike Baker, Haliburton Echo More than 600 Ontarians filled the virtual galleries of the Ontario Legislature for Question Period on May 18 to share their stories and demand improvements to long-term care, but Premier Doug Ford and Merrilee Fullerton, minister of long-term care, were nowhere to be found. “It was pretty […]

Peterborough-area health coalitions calling on province to fix issues with long-term care

(June 22, 2021) By: Mark Giunta, Global News Health Coalitions in Peterborough, Northumberland County and the City of Kawartha Lakes say long-term care (LTC) living conditions and staffing levels remain top issues in Ontario. The three coalitions commissioned a survey of LTC front-line workers in all three of the communities and released the findings in a virtual media conference on Tuesday. It found 70 […]

Occ-COVID-Science, Solutions & Success Stories

(April 23, 2021) By: Occupational Health Clinics for Ontario Workers Inc. Ontario Health Coalition executive director Natalie Mehra spoke to the Occupational Health Clinics for Ontario Workers (OHCOW) to mark the losses during COVID-19 and to discuss the lessons from the pandemic. Speaking notes from the event can be found here Click here for speaking notes A […]

‘I left feeling incompetent’: Grace Villa nurse reveals why she resigned after Hamilton’s worst COVID-19 outbreak

(June 16, 2021) By: Maria Iqbal, Spectator Reporter The mental-health impact of COVID-19 on long-term-care staff is “one of the untold stories of the pandemic,” says the executive director of the Ontario Health Coalition. “The staffing levels are worse than ever,” said Natalie Mehra. “We continue to hear of staff leaving in significant numbers … just because they can’t […]

Join A Virtual Rally Against Ford Government’s Move to Muzzle Opposition

(June 13, 2021) By: Doug Draper, Niagara At Large “So Doug Ford wants to break the constitution to up his chances of winning an election & stifle his opposition. The only other time I have been this disgusted was when Ford passed Bill 218 last fall to shield the for-profit long-term care companies from liability […]

Advocates push for more air conditioning in long-term care as heat hits Ontario

(June 5, 2021) CBC News Staff, CBC News With temperatures set to soar above 30 C in areas of the province this weekend, advocates are once again sounding the alarm about sweltering conditions inside some of Ontario’s beleaguered long-term care homes. During a heat wave last July, homes were still reeling from the first wave of the […]

Northumberland Health Coalition calling on province to reform long-term care system

(June 4, 2021) By: Linda Mackenzie-Nicholas, Bonnie Kennedy, & Roy Brady, Northumberland News Chronic underfunding and privatization of health care have had an increasingly negative impact, particularly in long-term care, as has been made painfully obvious during COVID-19. Decades of underfunding, understaffing, poor working conditions, high levels of violence and a focus on profits over […]

Peterborough letter: End for-profit long-term-care, bring in paid sick time

(June 2, 2021) Roy Brady, Bonnie Kennedy, & Linda Mackenzie-Nicholas, The Peterborough Examiner We are writing to bring your attention to an extremely important issue that has been exacerbated by a pandemic that has changed everything. This issue has been around for a long time and much has been promised but not delivered — time […]

Whether it’s public or private, we’re all paying for long-term care. It should be better

(May 31, 2021) By: Martin Regg Cohn, Toronto Star We’ve long known that long-term care is ailing because politicians prefer short-term shortcuts. In a post-pandemic world, how do we get it right? A persuasive new study on nursing homes suggests a two-step program for reform: First, the obvious part: governments must allocate more money to […]

Brampton’s abandoned healthcare system: ‘Why do we have to suffer?’

(May 31, 2021) By: Vanessa Balintec, Natasha O’Neill, & Nida Zafar, The Pointer Sangita Sharma was woken by her husband gasping for air in their Brampton home at 2:30 in the morning in early January 2013. She was confused; her husband, Harjinder Kumar Sharma, was not sick. He had come home the day before from […]

Virtual rally to demand changes to Ontario’s long-term care system

(May 28, 2021) By: Mike Baker, The Echo Haliburton County Bonnie Roe has had enough. As one of the founding members of the Haliburton-City of Kawartha Lakes Long-Term Care Coalition, Roe has spent the past 12 months advocating for local seniors and calling for much-needed improvements to both public and privately operated long-term care facilities […]

Le Manitoba continue de s’appuyer sur le système hospitalier nord-ontarien

(May 27, 2021) By: Zacharie Routhier, Miguel Lachance, ICI Radio-Canada.ca Six patients manitobains atteints de la COVID-19 ont été transférés à l’hôpital régional de Thunder Bay. PHOTO : RADIO-CANADA / CAROLINE BOURDUA Submergé par la COVID-19, le Manitoba continue de transférer des patients en Ontario. Les hôpitaux ontariens accueillent au total environ une vingtaine de patients manitobains […]

Reacting to the roadmap to end for-profit long-term care in Ontario

(May 26, 2021) By: Devon Peacock, Omny Studio Last week, the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives released a report that outlined a roadmap to ending for-profit long-term care in Ontario. The report was commissioned by the Ontario Health Coalition and published by the CCPA. Peter Bergmanis from the London Health Coalition joins Devon Peacock to […]

Ontario’s Assistant Infrastructure Minister Defended Doug Ford’s Handling of Long-Term Care Homes. He Also Held Shares in Long-Term Care Companies.

(May 26, 2021) By: PressProgress Doug Ford’s assistant infrastructure minister is an outspoken defender of Ontario’s response to COVID-19 in long-term care homes, but he’s been less vocal about his investments in two of the province’s most controversial LTC companies. According to his most recent filing with Ontario’s Integrity Commissioner, Assistant Infrastructure Minister Stephen Crawford […]

Report urges Queen’s Park to build LTC beds as non-profits

(May 22, 2021) By: Joanne Laucius, Sudbury Star The province should make capital funding available to not-for-profit LTC operators so they can open LTC homes, says a report written by nine policy experts. Licenses for more than 30,000 LTC beds in Ontario are set to expire in 2025 and 15,000 new beds are in the […]

Fund non-profit care: report; Queen’s Park urged to shift support away from private long-term care residences

(May 21, 2021) By: Joanne Laucius, Ottawa Citizen (Print Edition) The province should make capital funding available to not-for-profit operators so they can open LTC homes, says a report by nine policy experts. Licences for more than 30,000 LTC beds in Ontario are set to expire in 2025 and 15,000 new beds are in the […]

Government shows a lack of respect

(May 20, 2021) By: Shirley Roebuck, Chatham Daily News (Print Edition) Today, I participated in the Ontario Health Coalition‘s virtual rally for long-term care homes while question period at the Ontario legislature was broadcast via Zoom and Facebook. Opposition MPPs peppered Conservative MPPs with questions about long-term care that had been submitted by LTC families. […]

Ford and Fullerton absent from virtual question period packed with LTC residents, workers and families

(May 19, 2021) By: Megan Delaire, Toronto.com Ontario Premier Doug Ford and Dr. Merrilee Fullerton make an announcement together at the Darlington Energy Complex in 2016. Both were absent from question period on May 18, as long-term-care residents, staff and families packed the virtual gallery. – Metroland file photo In a physically distanced twist on […]

Ontario Health Coalition Asking Residents To Virutally “Pack The Gallery” Of The Legislature To Pressure The Government To “Fix” Long Term Care

(May 18, 2021) By: Pamela Vanmeer, Kawartha 411 KAWARTHA LAKES-The Ontario Health Coalition is asking residents to pack the gallery of the legislature virtually to pressure the government to fix Long Term Care. They are trying to organize thousands of Ontarians to pack the Public Galleries virtually for Question Period today at 10:30 am. Here […]

Pack the Public Galleries at the Ontario Legislature

(May 18, 2021) By: 104.7 Heart FM The Ontario Health Coalition hosted a virtual event today to “Pack the Public Galleries” with people outraged over the Provinces LTC Response. ONTARIO – The Ontario Health Coalition invited everyone this morning to join a Zoom call entitled Pack the Public Galleries of the Ontario Legislature. The goal […]

Column: Every Sudburian should read long-term care report

(May 12, 2021) By: Dorothy (Dot) Klein, Timmins Daily Press A family in a long-term care home. PHOTO BY TONY CALDWELL /Postmedia Network Ontario’s Long-Term Care COVID-19 Commission Report was made public on April 30 and can be found on the Ontario Government website. I recommend that every Ontario taxpayer read this report to fully comprehend the […]

Doug Ford promised ‘accountability’ after last year’s horrors in long-term care. Critics say they are still waiting

(May 6, 2021) By: Rob Ferguson, Muskoka Region (Metroland Media Group) Ontario’s Solicitor General Sylvia Jones said she is not aware of any provincial investigation into what Premier Doug Ford called “disgusting” situations in long-term-care homes. – Frank Gunn / THE CANADIAN PRESS It’s been almost a year since a visibly upset Premier Doug Ford […]

Will COVID-19 vaccinations bring fresh air to some Caledon seniors after months of isolation?

(May 4, 2021) By: Alexandra Heck, Caledon Enterprise The closest Inge Hoare has gotten to her 98-year-old mother, Marie Placzek, in the past year is through the window of Placzek’s room at King Nursing Home in Bolton. “She’s one of the lucky ones,” Hoare said, noting that they wouldn’t be able to have window visits […]

Ontario Care Homes Not Prepared for the Spread of the Pandemic

(May 2, 2020) By: CTV News Analysis “We can’t allow people to die & suffer with the kind of neglect we have seen over the last year. It is an absolute moral failure.” – Executive director Natalie Mehra on CTV News talking about the state of long-term care after the new COVID-19 Long-Term Care Commission […]

NATALIE MEHRA – EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR ONTARIO HEALTH COALITION

(May 2, 2021) By: Matt Holmes, iHeart Radio We are not going to let the Ford gov’t off the hook! “They didn’t improve staffing throughout the pandemic, care levels are the lowest they have ever been. There is so much more they could have done to protect people’s lives.” “A real vindication of what we […]

After 26 years working at a factory, he caught COVID-19 and died. Inside one Brampton family’s story of the pandemic’s devastating — and preventable — toll

(May 1, 2021) By: Sara Mojtehedzadeh, New Hamburg Independent (Metroland Media Group) Kanaiya Gandhi was the kind of dad who shared everything, the kind who spent rarely on himself so his daughters could take swimming lessons. A run for his Tim Hortons coffee typically ended with doughnuts for the whole family; he loved to ply […]

COVID-19: Here’s the situation in the Sault this week

(April 30, 2021) By: Riley Smith, SooToday.com Stock image Update: Algoma Public Health reported one further COVID case in the region on Friday evening. Cases of COVID-19 across Ontario ranged this week between a low of 3,265 and a high of 4,094. As new provincial COVID cases remain steady at slightly lower daily averages, the province is […]

Seniors languish in LTC; Time to let residents out of their prisons

(April 29, 2021) By: Sue-Ann Levy, Toronto Sun Some 99% of long-term care (LTC) and retirement home residents have been vaccinated with both doses, and yet, they’re still locked into facilities – not free to even venture outdoors with the nice weather. It’s been more than a year of loneliness and isolation for them. When […]