The battle over the future of Ontario's health care system heats up

The Ontario Health Coalition says the province is on track for a fully privatized health care system. The government scoffed at that claim

Published May 30, 2024

North Bay Health Coalition spokesperson Henri Giroux says privatized health care in on the way in Ontario unless the public rises up PHOTO BY GREG ESTABROOKS

While the crowd lacked in size, those in that crowd tried to emotionally express their beliefs that the Ontario Conservative Party is trying to drag public health care into the private health care zone.

Henri Giroux and about 15 supporters were in front of Nipissing MPP Vic Fedeli’s main street constituency office over the noon hour on Thursday.

Giroux was speaking at the event in North Bay while a much larger protest taking place at Queen’s Park over the health care issue.

Giroux says the current government is tearing down a private health care system that if unchecked will become privatized. He says the fight needs to accelerate now before it is too late. Giroux claims that Ontario has shortchanged the health care system for years.

“We know that Ontario’s health care (per capita) budget is the lowest in Canada,” says Giroux adding that most of the group gathered in front of Fedeli’s office were older citizens not connected to the labour movement they just do not want to see change.

“Right now we have a health care system is accessible. In the very near future we are going to have a health care system that is private. We will go to an American-style system,” says Giroux producing flyers that state the Ontario government is already funding private health centres over public ones.

Read more at the North Bay Nugget