FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
KENORA, ON – In response to the Ford government’s plans to double private delivery of MRIs and CT scans, hospital workers will be protesting at Ontario PC MPP Greg Rickford’s constituency office in Kenora on Thursday morning.
“The Ford government says the status quo isn’t working – but it’s a status quo of their own making,” said Michael Hurley, President of CUPE’s Ontario Council of Hospital Unions (OCHU/CUPE). “They have been underfunding and starving the public system and dangling privatization as a solution. But privatization is twice as expensive and comes with longer waiting lists. We are calling for real solutions to the hospital crisis, like concrete measures to attract and retain new staff and the addition of new beds.”
The union pointed out a recent Ontario Health Coalition report that found private clinics are illegally billing patients up to $8,000 for medically necessary services in violation of the Canada Health Act.
“Premier Ford famously claimed that Ontarians would never have to pay with their credit card, only their OHIP card. However, patients at for-profit clinics are being charged thousands of dollars,” said Sharon Richer, Secretary-Treasurer of OCHU/CUPE. “People have been told they can either pay for medically needed surgeries or face extreme wait times.”
The rally in Kenora is part of a series of demonstrations the union is organizing across communities in Ontario, as private clinics receive record funding while public hospitals operate deficits.
Who: Michael Hurley, President of OCHU/CUPE
Sharon Richer, Secretary-Treasurer of OCHU/CUPE
Judy Bain, OCHU Northwestern Ontario Vice-president
What: Hospital workers rally at Ontario PC MPP Greg Rickford’s constituency office.
When: 11:30 a.m., Thursday, July 18.
Where: 610 Lakeview Drive, Suite B, Kenora, Ontario P9N 3V2.
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For more information, contact:
Robert Murdoch
CUPE Communications
rmurdoch@cupe.ca
416-434-3690
