Rally protesting privatization of healthcare happening in Brockville July 25

A rally is planned for Thursday, July 25 in Brockville at MPP Steve Clark’s constituency office to protest the increasing privatization of health care in Ontario.

“In response to the Ford government’s plans to double private delivery of MRIs and CT scans, hospital workers will be protesting,” the Ontario Council of Hospital Unions (OCHU) and Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) state in a media release.

“The Ford government says the status quo isn’t working – but it’s a status quo of their own making,” Michael Hurley, President of CUPE’s Ontario Council of Hospital Unions (OCHU/CUPE), said in the release. “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 cites a recent Ontario Health Coalition report, which 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 media release says that the rally in Brockville 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.

Brockvilleist will continue to provide coverage on this issue as it develops.