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A comprehensive report titled “At What Cost? Ontario Hospital Privatization and the Threat to Public Health Care” has raised serious concerns about the Ford government’s efforts to privatize core services within public hospitals, including diagnostics and surgeries. The report, published by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and based on a wealth of data gathered through Freedom of Information requests, financial and statistical analysis, and in-depth research, sheds light on the negative consequences of these privatization initiatives for Ontario’s public hospitals and patients.
One of the report’s key revelations pertains to the substantial gap between the government’s stated expenditures on private clinics and the actual funds allocated. According to Andrew Longhurst, a political economist and the report’s author, “Increasing surgical and diagnostic capacity depends on the availability of qualified staff, which is not magically increased by the addition of profit.” Longhurst, a health policy researcher at Simon Fraser University, expresses his apprehension that Ontario may follow in the footsteps of Alberta. This province witnessed increased wait times and decreased surgical volumes when public funding and staffing were diverted into investor-owned centers.
The report paints a stark picture of the current state of healthcare in Ontario. With 1,290 patients languishing on stretchers in hospital hallways waiting for beds and 170,000 patients exceeding medically recommended guidelines for surgeries (including 17,000 children), the situation is dire. Shockingly, more than 2,400 patients died last year while waiting for surgeries, and 9,000 perished while on waiting lists for MRIs and CT scans. Furthermore, 145 emergency departments remain closed due to staff shortages.
Michael Hurley, president of the CUPE’s Ontario Council of Hospital Unions (OCHU), weighed in, stating, “The Ford Conservatives promote private hospitals and private surgeries, even though it is well documented that private hospitals have higher death rates and worse outcomes than public hospitals – and that private surgeries are much more expensive. This report details clearly why the Ford government must scrap its campaign to reward its rich investor friends and instead do its job to properly fund our public hospitals.”
The report highlights a stark contrast in funding priorities. While Ontario’s overall health funding increased by a mere 1.2% this year, falling significantly below the inflation rate of 5.6%, funding for for-profit surgeries has surged by 45%. Public funding for for-profit establishments such as the Shouldice Hospital and Don Valley Surgical Unit has increased by 19% and 278%, respectively, since the Ford Conservatives assumed power.
The report also draws attention to the link between high levels of privatization and poor wait time performances in provinces such as British Columbia, Quebec, and Alberta. In comparison, provinces with little to no privatization have demonstrated better wait time outcomes.
As concerns mount over the impact of privatization on public health care, this report urges a reevaluation of the Ford government’s policies and increased investment in public hospitals to ensure the well-being of Ontarians.
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