News + Events

The Shadow Side of the Rise of Big Hospital Foundation Gifts: Donation Disparities, Roller Coaster Giving and Donor Influence

(July 13, 2022) By: Gabe Oatley, Future of Good The discrepancy in donations could have consequences. If a community can’t come up with the money for its local share, the project will stall, preventing a community from securing much-need equipment for renovations, says Monika Turner, Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO) policy director. She stresses […]

Craig Needles Podcast Episode 86: Healthcare in Ontario, LAVs in Saudi Arabia

(July 12, 2022) By: Craig Needles, Blackburn News With concerns about hospital wait times amid another potential wave of serious COVID cases, Craig talks to Peter Bergmanis of the Ontario Health Coalition about the state of the system in the province. Also – why wasn’t healthcare a bigger topic during the provincial election? Then, Craig […]

Craig Needles Podcast Episode 86: Healthcare in Ontario, LAVs in Saudi Arabia

‘Long, hard summer’ looms in hospital ERs for exhausted staff, forced-to-wait patients: Doctor

(July 11, 2022) By: Jonathan Juha, The London Free Press Some hospitals in the London region are running some of Ontario’s shortest emergency room wait times, but lineups in London are roughly three times as long if not more, latest figures show. The snapshot of the situation in emergency medicine comes from figures reported for […]

‘Long, hard summer’ looms in hospital ERs for exhausted staff, forced-to-wait patients: Doctor

EVENT: Ontario Health Coalition Post-Election Debrief & Assembly

(June 24, 2022) We are so proud to have worked with all of you to do our utmost to set the health care issues leading into the election. We mounted a very significant fightback against privatization and won major policy shifts among the opposition parties. We forced the Ford government to backtrack on its hospital […]

OPINION: Universal health-care privatization is unhealthy if profit ‘trumps everything else’

(June 14, 2022) By: Patricia Baker, The Sault Star In order to begin the long overdue restoration of our universal health care system in Ontario and Canada, hospital/long-term care, public health administrators, private for-profit chains and governments need to start looking at their workforce as an irreplaceable resource worth its weight in gold. […]

Executive director Natalie Mehra speaks to ARM Chapter 12 OSSTF Toronto at the ARM AGM 2022

(June 9, 2022) By: ARM Chapter 12 OSSTF Toronto Natalie Mehra, Executive Director of the Ontario Health Coalition addressed the ARM Chapter 12 Annual General Meeting on June 8, 2022. The meeting took place virtually, and her address was recorded. Natalie describes the current crisis in public health care in Ontario. Unfortunately, Natalie’s camera was […]

Bailey challenged on Tory claims about healthcare spending

(June 9, 2022) By: Shirley Roebuck, The Sarnia Journal Bailey challenged on Tory claims about healthcare spending Sir: Regarding the May 19 article, Healthcare dominated Sarnia-Lambton candidate debate. MPP Bob Bailey inferred that the Sarnia Lambton Health Coalition and Ontario Health Coalition were lying about Doug Ford’s and Bob Bailey’s plans for public health care. […]

Ontario doctor who charged for tests he didn’t do may still keep the money

(June 9, 2022) BY: Jon Woodward, CTV News Ontario’s physician watchdog has come down as hard as it can on a doctor who it found billed the province’s public medical system for tens of thousands of tests he didn’t do — but the maximum penalty doesn’t come close to the money he took. And […]

OPINION: The privatization of hospital services under Doug Ford

(June 7, 2022) By: Natalie Mehra, Toronto Sun The Ford government is planning to privatize our public hospital services. This statement is based on a video of the minister of health, the government’s own written plans, and a Ford government press release announcing millions of dollars to expand private clinics. There is no […]

Une autre majorité Ford nécessite de construire une gauche combative

(June 7, 2022) By: David Bush, Presse Toi à Gauche ! Mais nous devons nous garder de brosser un tableau trop sombre du résultat des élections ou de rejeter l’électorat. Avec un taux de participation de 43 %, l’élection provinciale de 2022 a été de loin la plus faible participation électorale de l’histoire de l’Ontario. Les […]

No evidence of new charges for Ontario blood tests, despite social media concerns

(June 01, 2022) By:Elizabeth Payne, Toronto Sun There have been no changes to lab tests covered under the Ontario Health Insurance Plan that may have led to a patient being billed, a Ministry of Health spokesperson has confirmed. Bill Campbell issued the statement in response to multiple claims on social media that some Ontario […]

Aucun test retiré de la couverture de l’Assurance-santé de l’Ontario, selon le ministère

(June 1, 2022) By: Radio-Canada La plupart des tests de laboratoire courants qui sont prescrits sont couverts par l’Assurance-santé de l’Ontario. PHOTO : GETTY IMAGES/ISTOCKPHOTO Le ministère de la Santé de l’Ontario affirme ne pas avoir réduit le remboursement de tests sanguins déjà couverts par la province au cours des dernières années, après une série de messages […]

GUELPH POLITICAST #326 – Healthcare: A Pre-Election Podcast

(June 1, 2o22) By: Adam A. Donaldson, Guelph Politicast Affordability has kind of hijacked the priorities this election, but once it would have been possible to see healthcare being the number one issue of the 2022 campaign. From more funding for our overburdened hospitals, getting for-profit companies out of long-term care, and expanding coverage to […]

No tests cut from OHIP coverage recently, says ministry amid reports of charges for blood work

(May 31, 2022) Ontario’s Ministry of Health says there have been no cuts to provincially covered blood tests in recent years, after a string of viral social media posts in which people said they have been charged for lab work. In a statement issued this week, the ministry said that since 2017, there have been […]

What were people protesting at the private Doug Ford Rally in London, Ontario?

(May 30, 2022) By: The Kelly Cutrara Show, 640 Toronto Kelly talks to Jeff Hanks, Co-Chair of the of the London Health Coalition, and the man who rushed the stage at the Doug Ford rally this past weekend in London. Click here for full video

Protestors disrupt Ford’s campaign rally in London, Ont.

(May 29, 2022) By: CP24 Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford’s campaign rally in London, Ont. on Sunday afternoon was briefly disrupted by protesters. Ford was beginning to deliver his remarks at Lamplighter Inn when a man came up to the stage and was heard telling the PC leader, “Mr. Ford, you’re privatizing our health care. […]

Here’s why OHIP and LifeLabs are trending in Ontario right now

(May 30, 2022) By: Becky Robertson, blogTO There’s a ton of chatter across social media today on the topic of healthcare in Ontario as we sit just days away from a Provincial Election, and people are calling Premier Doug Ford out hard on what appears to be some cuts he’s recently made to OHIP coverage. […]

Ontario hospital network says it sometimes charges patients for variety of tests

(May 31, 2022) By: Chris Herhalt, CTV News Amid ongoing concerns about fees for routine diagnostic medical testing in Ontario, one hospital network has charged patients to perform a raft of different tests – ranging from STDs to cancer screening to select blood tests – in certain circumstances for at least five years. Fee guides […]

Province ‘should have known’ state of long-term care

(May 31, 2022) By: Andrew Duffy, North Bay Nugget Advocates for Ontario’s long-term care residents say Premier Doug Ford and his government should have known which long-term care homes would be most at risk in a pandemic based on years of inspection reports, risk modelling and bed classifications. In an interview, NDP health critic France […]

Protesters storm stage to interrupt private Doug Ford Rally in London, Ont.

(May 29, 2022) By: Brent Lale, CTV News London The Ontario PC Party wasn’t about to let a few rogue protesters deter them from getting their message out to supporters Sunday. With a few hundred people inside the Lamplighter Inn in London, Ont. the rally began with a couple of interruptions. The co-chair of […]

Doug Ford’s Health Care Privatization Agenda Must Be Stopped

(May 26, 2022) By: Vi Bui, The Council of Canadians At its core, health care must be public and well-funded to guarantee services to all. Yet, thanks to decades of underfunding and privatization, our public health systems in Ontario have been under tremendous strain – a trend that the COVID-19 pandemic has both highlighted and […]

Doug Ford is spending billions to expand nursing home chains with some of the worst COVID-19 death rates

(May 27, 2022) By: Marco Chown Oved, Kenyon Wallace & Ed Tubb,Toronto Star Nursing home chains with some of the highest COVID-19 death rates are set to reap big financial rewards under the Ford government’s $6.4-billion expansion of the province’s long-term-care system. According to records obtained by the Star, more than half of the approximately […]

How Ontario’s elder-care policies favour for-profit homes

(May 21, 2022) By: Karen Howlett, The Globe and Mail Bernard Boreland, CEO/administrator with Mariann Home chats with resident Margaret Bourke, in the long-term care facility in Richmond Hill, Ont., on Mar 22. FRED LUM/THE GLOBE AND MAIL Bernard Boreland’s first inkling that the Ontario government planned to claw back wage increases for his nursing-home […]

VIDEO: Ford Government’s Plan to Defund & Privatize Our Public Health Care System

(May 24, 2022) There is a large for-profit health care industry banging at our door. If we don’t provide the staffing, provide the funding in our public system, there is no choice but to privatize, because people still need care. We must tell Ford and the for-profit health care industry that our public health care […]

There’s a moral obligation to end the suffering of LTC residents and staff

(May 20, 2022) By: Doreen Nicoll According to Public Health Ontario, 4,517 people living in long-term care (LTC) homes have died from COVID. That number would be far greater if it included LTC residents who died from malnutrition, dehydration, lack of medical care, lack of care and negligence. According to Natalie Mehra, Executive Director […]

Ontario election: leaders debate – we check facts

(May 18, 2022) By: School Magazine Alright, we know the Ontario election, like all others, is about retail politics – how candidates might best appear to be doing what needs to be done without costing their constituents any more than they absolutely have to. It’s not about a vision of possibilities – as we come […]

Ontario Health Coalition pushing for proof that long-term care promises are being met

(May 19, 2022) By: Millar Hill, Blackburn News Blackburnnews.com file photo. A health advocacy organization is putting pressure on the Progressive Conservatives to show that their promises of improving long-term care in Ontario are being met. Ontario Health Coalition (OHC) Executive Director Natalie Mehra says last fall, the Ford government promised a minimum care standard, increased fines, […]

Election primer: Ontario’s health care crisis

(May 19, 2022) By: Canadian Dimension The Ontario Health Coalition is warning against unprecedented health care privatization and is calling for it to be a key election issue. Photo by Internal Museum of the Red Cross and Red Crescent/ Unsplash. As the writ was dropped for the June 2 provincial election, the Ontario Health Coalition […]

Kingston Health Coalition responds to provincial leaders’ debate

(May 17, 2022) By: Dylan Chenier, Kingstonist Members of the Kingston Health Coalition hold up signs at the corner of Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard and Princess Street on Thursday, Jul. 22, 2021. Photo by Penny Cadue. Last night, in the first and only official provincial leaders’ debate, Ontarians had an opportunity to hear from […]

VIDEO: Privatization of COVID-19 Vaccinations & Testing in Ontario

(May 20, 2022) One of the ways the Doug Ford government is privatizing health care is by privatizing COVID-19 vaccinations, which used to be provided by public health, and COVID-19 testing, which was handed off to for-profit companies charging more than $200 for a test. We must put an end to for-profit health care. Analysis

VIDEO: Doug Ford & The For-Profit Long-Term Care Lobby Industry

(May 19, 2022) Despite for-profit long-term care companies being responsible for a majority of the deaths in long-term care during the pandemic, there has been no accountability and care has not improved. Instead, there is a revolving door between the Ontario Conservative Party, the Ford government and the for-profit long-term care industry. We must invest […]

REPORT: Crisis Unabated: The Failure to Improve Dangerously Low Care Levels in Ontario’s Long-Term Care Homes

(May 18, 2022) Click here for printable version of report found below. Summary of Findings After enormous public pressure, the Ford government committed to improving care levels in Ontario’s long-term care homes. Even though residents were dying literally by the thousands in the pandemic, the plan which is very simple and could have been forged […]

Renfrew County members sought for health advocacy group

(May 12, 2022) By: Derek Dunn, The Star A coalition of more than 400 health organizations with chapters all around the Arnprior Renfrew area is seeking to establish one in the county. The idea is meeting with approval from Renfrew county’s leading health official, Dr. Robert Cushman. The Acting Medical Officer of Health with experience […]

Niagara Health reports the death of two more Niagara residents

(May 13, 2022) By: Victoria Nicolaou, Niagara Falls Review COVID-19 infections may be slightly down as compared to the last few weeks, but hospitalizations remain high, and Niagara’s acting medical officer of health warns there continues to be “a lot of risk” in the community. “While we might be looking more positive, it’s going to […]

Sudbury letter: Use election to fix long-term care

(May 11, 2022) By: Letter to the editor, Sarnia & Lambton County This Week Melissa Wood, co-chair of the Sudbury chapter of the Ontario Health Coalition, highlights health-care challenges in the province, including a shortage of personal support workers and further privatization of long-term care. PHOTO BY JIM MOODIE/SUDBURY STAR The provincial June election is approaching […]

‘Incremental benefit’: Simcoe-Muskoka’s top doc won’t back mask mandate call from colleagues, Ontario Health Coalition

(May 11, 2022) By: Chris Simon, The Star Is it time to re-implement more stringent masking mandates? Dr. Charles Gardner, the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit’s medical officer of health, doesn’t see a need to impose broad new mask rules in indoor public settings right now. “At this time, with the current wave trending downwards, wastewater […]

Election candidates for Sarnia-Lambton talk health care

(May 10, 2022) By: Tyler Kula, Woodstock Sentinel-Review Sarnia-Lambton provincial election candidates Bob Bailey, left, Mark Russell, Keith Benn and Dylan Stelpstra participated in an all-candidates meeting at the Sarnia Golf and Curling Club May 10, 2022 (Tyler Kula. The Observer). Ontario’s Progressive Conservatives have no plans to privatize the health-care system, says the party’s […]

Ontario election 2022: Will the pandemic tragedy in long-term care lead to real change?

(May 9, 2022) By: Elizabeth Payne, Ottawa Citizen Ontario’s long-term care system was a crisis waiting to happen when the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March 2020. Years of neglect, crowded conditions, chronic understaffing and underfunding combined with a lack of effective preparation for the long-anticipated pandemic, set the stage for disaster when COVID-19 began to […]

Ontario’s healthcare system is not for sale

(May 6, 2022) By: Doreen Nicoll, Rabble A photo of a car sticker opposing the privatization of healthcare from the Ontario Health Coalition Facebook page. Who owns the Ontario healthcare system? And, in who’s interest? These are the questions Natalie Mehra wants Ontarians to ask candidates running in the provincial election. As executive director of Ontario […]

The privatization of long-term care homes in Ontario must be stopped

(May 6, 2022) By: Rabble Radio This week on the show, rabble contributor Doreen Nicoll interviews Natalie Mehra, the executive director of the Ontario Health Coalition. The Ontario Health Coalition is a non-profit, non-partisan public interest activist coalition and network whose primary goal is to protect and improve Ontario’s public health care system. The coalition […]

Health coalition asking provincial candidates to prioritize healthcare

(May 5, 2022) By: Melanie Irwin, Sarnia News Today Ontario Health Coalition supporters at Queen’s Park rally, October 10, 2018 (Photo from OHC Facebook). The Ontario Health Coalition is calling on provincial election candidates to make commitments to improve all aspects of healthcare if elected next month. Lt.-Gov. Elizabeth Dowdeswell accepted Doug Ford’s request to […]

Provincial candidates should push for growing health-care services in burgeoning Durham: regional chair

(May 5, 2022) By: Reka Szekely, Welland Tribune Every candidate running in the provincial election in Durham should work to understand the region’s health-care challenges, says Regional Chair John Henry. Henry said massive growth in the area, with the population expected to double by 2051, means that health-care services must continue to grow. “When you […]

VIDEO: Doug Ford’s Broken Long-Term Care Promises

(May 6, 2022) Please share widely. Analysis Despite promising to fix long-term care, the Ford government let thousands of residents die and, rather than holding operators to account, they intend to give tens of thousands of beds to for-profit companies with ghastly records of care. We want accountability for what has happened, which we’ve never […]

Let’s put this crisis to good use

(May 4, 2022) By: Richard Mahoney, The Glengarry News They are off and promising. Another election campaign has officially begun in Ontario, where for the next month strategists and candidates will be seeking the hearts and ballots of voters. Talk is cheap. And that is a good thing because everything else costs an arm and […]

RELEASE: Ontario Election Health Care Primer: Health Coalition Brings Warning and Outlines Key Issues as the Writ Drops

(May 5, 2022) Toronto – As the writ was dropped for the June 2 provincial election, the Ontario Health Coalition warned against unprecedented health care privatization and called for it to be a key election issue. The Coalition also outlined a set of health care priorities for Ontarians. First, on privatization: The Ford government is […]

Health experts urge province to reinstate mandatory masking

(May 2, 2022) By: Durham Radio News Masks in most public settings in Ontario are no longer required. However, as transmission of COVID-19 remains high, health experts are asking the province to reinstate mandatory masking. On Monday, the Ontario Health Coalition held a press conference with health and legal experts. One of those to speak […]

Sudbury workers, community activists sound the alarm on May Day

(May 02, 2022) By: Jim Moodie, Sudbury Star It’s a date to celebrate workers but also a call of distress, and those gathered Sunday in Memorial Park were doing both — honouring those who drive the economy with their labour while sounding the alarm on attacks to their livelihoods and dignity. “May Day has […]

Reinstating masks would help get Ontario’s sixth pandemic wave under control, say experts

(May 2, 2022) By: Jacquie Miller, Ottawa Citizen A disposable face mask hanging on a street pole. PHOTO BY KEVIN KING /Postmedia With COVID-19 levels remaining high in Ontario, a coalition of health groups is calling on the province to reinstate indoor mask requirements, which were dropped on March 21. Requiring masks in indoor public […]

Rally to stop privatization of healthcare set for downtown Oakville

(May 2, 2022) By: Gene Pereira, inSauga.com The Ontario Health Coalition is holding a rally to stop privatization of the healthcare system at the town square in downtown Oakville this Friday. OHC PHOTO. The Ontario Health Coalition’s (OHC) fight to stop privatization of public health care is taking to the streets of Oakville. The group […]

New mask mandates urged as Niagara Health reports five new COVID patient deaths

(May 2, 2022) By: Allan Benner, St. Catharines Standard As COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths continue to increase, a public health legal expert says a lack of action among boards of health “feels like an abdication or dereliction of duty.” “The duty of the board (of health) is to prevent disease and control the spread of […]

‘It just absolutely can’t happen’: Aurora resident hosts virtual privatization of health care summit

(May 1, 2022) By: Laura Broadley, The Star Aurora resident Mary Jo Nabuurs is passionate about public health care in Ontario, so much so that she volunteers her time with the Ontario Health Coalition. The coalition recently hosted a virtual summit, with a focus on Scarborough, Toronto and York Region, to discuss the privatization […]

RELEASE: Health & legal experts call for reinstatement of masking protections as Omicron – one of the most infectious viruses known – tears through Ontario population

(May 2, 2022) Their expertise is unassailable, their message clear: in a virtual press conference this morning hosted by the Ontario Health Coalition, health and legal experts called on the Ontario government, the Chief Medical Officer of Health and local Medical Officers of Health and their Public Health Boards of Directors to do their duty […]

Amendments To Act Governing Ross Memorial Hospital Passed Second And Third Reading In The Legislature Today

(April 28, 2022) By: Pamela Vanmeer, Kawartha 411 KAWARTHA LAKES-The Ross Memorial Hospital recently applied for special legislation to change the name of the hospital corporation and to change its objects, its powers, the composition of its board and its membership structure and today those changes passed despite objections from local health coalitions and the […]

Long-term care staffers honoured at Cornwall National Day of Mourning

(April 28, 2022) By: Laura Dalton, Cornwall Standard Freeholder Community members and city councillors gathered in Lamoureux Park Thursday to commemorate workers who have been injured or killed on the job. The service began with a land acknowledgement and prayer for those who have died, presented by Cornwall Coun. Elaine MacDonald, who is also […]

Health Care Coalition Says Proposed Changes To Governance Leave Ross Memorial Hospital Open To Amalgamation, Reduced Services

(April 27, 2022) By: Pamela Vanmeer, Kawartha 411 KAWARTHA LAKES-The Kawartha Lakes Health Coalition (KLHC)and the Ontario Health Coalition say they are very concerned about proposed changes to the governance at Ross Memorial Hospital. “I’m particularly concerned because when we first met with the hospital they said this is just housekeeping, modernizing the language. […]

VIDEO: Doug Ford: Our Hospitals Are Not For Sale

(April 27, 2022) Analysis Don’t let the Doug Ford government do to our hospitals what they did to long-term care, where for-profit companies took tens of millions of dollars while residents have been left to die of dehydration, starvation, and neglect. Tell Doug Ford – and all Ontario political parties – Our Public Hospitals are […]

Ontario ignoring lessons of pandemic, building a generation of private care homes, critics say

(April 22, 2022) By: Elizabeth Payne, Ottawa Citizen Critics are accusing the provincial government of ignoring hard-learned lessons of the pandemic after awarding licences for hundreds of new and upgraded long-term care beds in Ottawa to private companies. Three private long-term care companies, including one with among the highest death rates during the […]

Boring election? The Ontario Health Coalition wants everyone to pay attention

(Apr 20, 2022) By: Jeff Green, Frontenac News Ontario is a couple of weeks away from the start of a short, one month election campaign, but you would think the election is years off judging from media coverage this week. In a scan of the home pages of 5 major news websites this morning (April […]

Fight health-care privatization – Giroux

(April 19, 2022) By: PJ Wilson, North Bay Nugget People across the province have to act now to make sure no provincial government, whatever stripe, brings in private health care, the president of the North Bay and District Health Coalition said Tuesday. Henri Giroux said Ontario Health Minister Christine Elliott, in an announcement Feb. […]

Ontario Health Coalition warns of Ford government’s healthcare privatization plans in virtual meeting

(April 19, 2022) By: Brent Sleightholm, Elliot Lake Today In a virtual meeting the executive director of the Ontario Health Coalition (OHC) warned of the dangers of Ford government initiatives to broaden private health care in the province. Natalie Mehra played a video clip taken from a Feb. 1 announcement in which Health Minister Christine Elliott […]

Ontario health professionals plead for continued masking mandates in high-risk settings

(April 17, 2022) By: Christian D’Avino, CTV News Healthcare officials across Ontario are calling on the province to extend its high-risk setting mask mandate past its current expiration date. Mask mandates in hospitals, long-term care facilities, other health care settings and public transit are set to come down on April 27, as Ontario continues to […]

Ontario heading toward ‘two-tier health-care system,’ York Region coalition says

(April 12, 2022) By: Michele Weisz, Newmarket Today The Toronto and York Health Coalition, a branch of the Ontario Health Coalition, is holding an emergency virtual summit to create public awareness for what they consider to be the provincial government’s goal of privatizing health care. “So many people aren’t even aware that this stuff […]

Ontario Health Coalition hosts Cornwall summit, discourages health care privatization

(April 11, 2022) By: Shawna O’Neill, Belleville The Intelligencer An online Emergency Summit was hosted by the Cornwall Health Coalition on Saturday, discussing alarming statistics pertaining to Ontario’s increasing privatization of health care. A number of industry professionals spoke during the summit, as well as local politicians. With the provincial election less than two months away, […]

Health care coalition spreading anti-privatization message prior to election

(April 6, 2022) By: Stephen Petrick, The Times Signs saying “Don’t Privatize our Public Health Care” will likely pop up on some Haliburton County lawns, ahead of the June 2 Ontario election. The signs are the work of the Ontario Health Coalition and part of a campaign to advocate for higher care standards, particularly in […]

Coalition sees health-care spending as an election issue

(April 6, 2022) By: Tyler Kula An Ontario health-care watchdog group wants voters to think about issues like long-term care bed investments mostly going to for-profit homes when they go to the provincial polls in June. “What we want to do is to try to educate as many people as we can about really […]

LTC concerns continue, despite provincial plans to hold operators accountable

(April 6, 2022) By: Allan Benner, The Peterborough Examiner A Niagara-based long-term-care advocacy group remains concerned about plans to award contracts and beds to homes that failed to protect residents during the pandemic, despite recent provincial legislation that will hold long-term-care providers accountable. The Ministry of Long-Term Care provided a statement in response to […]

Online Summit Continues Fight Against Health Care Privatization

(April 6, 2022) By: CKXS 99.1 FM Chair of the Chatham-Kent, Wallaceburg and Walpole Island, and Sarnia-Lambton Health Coalitions, Shirley Roebuck. An advocacy group continues to press the Ontario government to keep health care public.The Ontario Health Coalition is holding a virtual summit Thursday evening to fight privatization and protect public health care services. Shirley […]

Ontario Health Coalition plans online summit

(April 5, 2022) By: Brian Kelley, The Sault Star Ontario Health Coalition hosts an online emergency summit on April 12. “ Our goal is to protect and improve our vital public health-care services and stop the unprecedented for-profit privatization of health care,” a release says. Presenters include Marie DellaVedova and Albert Dupuis, OHC’s Algoma […]

Coalition launching campaign to stop health care privatization

(April 5, 2022) By: Allan Benner, The Peterborough Examiner Sandra Ashcroft says conditions were “utter mayhem” while she was working to help a for-profit long-term-care home in Niagara recover from a tragic COVID-19 outbreak. But instead of home operators being held accountable for failing to protect their residents, the registered nurse said some of […]

Ontario Health Coalition will hold Halton chapter summit on April 19

(April 5, 2022) By: Oakville Beaver The Ontario Health Coalition will hold a summit on Tuesday, April 19 to discuss their fears that the Ford government will increase privatization of the province’s health-care system. The virtual event will take place at 7 p.m. Featured speakers include: • Burlington, Halton, Oakville Health Coalition chair Mervyn […]

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 […]

CAMPAIGN: Fightback Against Health Care Privatization in Ontario

(March 31, 2022) The Ontario Health Coalition and Local Health Coalitions across Ontario are building the biggest fight-back we have ever mounted against the Ford government’s unprecedented health care privatization plans. Our goal is to protect and improve our vital public health care services and stop health care privatization. We are a non-partisan public watchdog […]

‘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 […]

RELEASE & BRIEFING NOTE: The Privatization of COVID-19 Testing in Ontario

(March 30, 2022) Click here for printable version of release Click here for printable version of briefing note Health Coalition Demands the Ford Government Stop 2–Tier Privatization of COVID–Testing& Restore Access to Public Testing Urgently as the Pandemic’s 6th Wave Gains Amplitude Toronto – Step by step, the Ford government has been privatizing PCR […]

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 […]

EVENTS & ACTIONS: Become a Public Medicare Defender Today

(March 13, 2023) We are calling on all Ontarians to help fight against the privatization. Become a Public Medicare Defender today to force Doug Ford to fix the crisis in our public hospital system and stop privatization. To sign up to become a Public Medicare Defender, fill in the form found below the slideshow on […]

EVENTS: Stop Ford’s Health Privatization: List of Emergency Local Summits

(March 11, 2022) LOCAL SUMMITS TO STOP PRIVATIZATION Health Care Privatization, Cuts to Long-Term Care, Hospitals, Home Care & more It Stops Now! We will not let the Ford Government expand private hospitals. We will not accept the privatization of18,000 LTC beds for the next 30-yrs. We will not let them privatize the last remaining public parts […]

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?

RELEASE: Our governments cannot negotiate away public health measures: Flooding of 911 lines, blocking of ambulances & other reckless endangerment of public health must result in consequences, safety must be restored

(February 10, 2022) Toronto—The Ottawa police reported today that their 911 emergency and police phone lines are being flooded in a “concerted effort” by protesters, warning this is endangering peoples’ lives. Yesterday the Manitoba RCMP reported that a 74-year-old male was stuck in a demonstration convoy on Highway 3 last week as he was attempting […]

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 […]

EVENT: Emergency Summit to Kick-off Campaign to Stop Health Care Privatization and Austerity

(February 9, 2022) Last week Doug Ford’s Health Minister announced that she is bringing in private hospitals. They are midstream in privatizing 18,000 LTC beds for the next 30-yrs. They passed legislation to privatize the last remaining public parts of home care. They are privatizing vaccines and COVID-testing, and more. They are planning billions of dollars […]

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 […]

RELEASE: Ontario Health Coalition Announces Our Highest Awards for 2021: This year’s recipients have made extraordinary contributions to vaccine education, stopping for-profit long-term care, public health care activism and advocacy for long-term care residents and their families

(February 3, 2022) Toronto – They contributed in unique ways, but each demonstrated extraordinary commitment to the public interest, the Ontario Health Coalition reported as it announced the winners of its highest awards. The awards celebrate the contributions of Ontarians who have made a remarkable contribution in public health care. “This year we have faced […]

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

RELEASE: Health Care System Besieged by COVID-19: Health Coalition demands Ford answer for lack of action

(January 20, 2022) Toronto – There are more than 4,000 patients with COVID-19 in Ontario’s hospitals, an all time high for this pandemic. Staffing levels across hospitals, long-term care and home care are catastrophic. Yet there is still no response from the Ford government except to talk about lifting public health measures. There are 594 […]

RELEASE: Emergency Measures Needed to Address the Health Care Staffing Crisis

(January 14, 2022) Ontario’s hospitals, long-term care (LTC) and home care services face critical and growing staffing crises. Our province’s health care system is not on the brink of crisis, it is in crisis. It is not an overstatement to describe a number of facilities and services as being in staffing collapse. The Ontario government […]

RELEASE & BRIEFING NOTE: Ontario Health Coalition Demands Answers from Ford Government on Long-Term Care & Hospital Crisis

(January 13, 2022) Toronto — The Ontario Health Coalition issued a statement today demanding that the Ford government explain what it is going to do about the spiralling crisis in Ontario’s long-term care homes and hospitals, and answer for their lack of preparedness. “The failures at this point in the pandemic are inexcusable,” said Natalie […]

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 […]

OP-ED: Doug Ford’s new long-term-care legislation, Bill 37, tolls for all of us

posted January 4, 2022

(January 4, 2022) By: Nancy Olivieri, Michael Hurley, Vivian Stamatopoulos and Natalie Mehra Hope to live out your old age in dignity and comfort? Think again, after Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s “new” long-term-care legislation, Bill 37, was rushed through with furtive speed, just before the holidays. Ushering in a series of deadly amendments to the […]

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 […]

EVENT: Weekend Educational & Annual Action Assembly Registration

(December 8, 2021) Saturday January 29 & Sunday January 30 2022 (All events will be held virtually via Zoom and offered at no cost to participants) Saturday January 29, 2022 One-Day Educational Our Derrell Dular Memorial School was created from an endowment made in memory of Derrell Dular who was a board member of the […]

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 […]

RELEASE: Ford government’s response on long-term care is a travesty: “New” LTC bill to be pushed through imminently

(December 6, 2021) Toronto – The so-called “new” long-term care legislation introduced by the Ford government is scheduled for third and final reading in the legislature today and it will be passed by the Conservative majority likely today or tomorrow. The bill, which is really just a series of amendments to the existing Long-Term Care […]

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

RELEASE: Ford Government is Awarding Thousands of Long-Term Care Beds to For-Profit Chains with Ghastly Records of Death and Suffering: New Coalition Report

(November 29, 2021) 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 outrage stops them. The […]

REPORT: Public Money, Private Profit: The Ford Government & the Privatization of the Next Generation of Ontario’s Long-Term Care

(November 29, 2021) Click here for the full report with a list of all the new bed licenses. A summary of the report can be found below. ——- Introduction & Key Findings After watching horror-struck as among the worst death rates in the world devastated Ontario’s long-homes during the pandemic, Ontarians were promised fundamental change. […]

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 […]

EVENT: Emergency Summit on Health Care Privatization

(November 11, 2021) To view the recorded livestream of the health care privatization summit, click here. IT STOPS NOW! EMERGENCY SUMMIT ON HEALTH CARE PRIVATIZATION. Urgent Call for Ontarians who want to safeguard & improve our public health care for people not for profit. When: Wednesday November 17 at 7 p.m How to Join: Virtual […]

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.” […]

OPEN LETTER: Urgent Letter to Ontario MPPs Regarding the New Long-Term Care Act

(November 8, 2021) Dear Members of Provincial Parliament, We are writing to request that you do not support or facilitate any plan to drive through the “new” long-term care bill with undemocratic speed. We are asking that there be full public hearings across Ontario on this legislation. Bill 37 Providing More Care, Protecting Seniors, and […]

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 […]

RELEASE & ANALYSIS: Health Coalition Quick Initial Analysis of the Ford Government’s New LTC Act

(October 28, 2021) Toronto – The Ford government has gone to extreme lengths to brand this as a new LTC Act. It is not a new Act. It is almost clause by clause the existing Act. What improvements that could have and should have happened are far more than the changes that they have made. […]

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 […]