Hansard Excerpt-LTC Raised in the Legislature

Hansard Excerpt - LTC Raised in the Legislature

November 21, 2001, John Gerretsen, MPP
November 7, 2001, Dwight Duncan, MPP
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Mr John Gerretsen (Kingston and the Islands):

“Long-term care in Ontario is in crisis." Let me repeat that: long-term care for our seniors, our elderly, who have served this province to ensure that we can enjoy the quality of life that most of us are enjoying in this province, is in crisis. So says the Ontario Association of Non-Profit Homes and Services for Seniors.

Many of us from all sides of the House had an opportunity to meet with this organization this morning, and they made it crystal-clear to us that the amount of funding the province puts into long-term care is highly inadequate. As they state, "Government funding for the operation of ... homes for the aged and nursing homes is not keeping pace with the changing requirements of residents who today are being admitted with far more complex health care needs. As a result, these facilities are now finding that their ability to provide adequate, appropriate, quality care is being compromised."

There's a shortfall of $558 million. The homes currently are being paid only $62 per day, the lowest level for a patient anywhere in Canada. What is the result of all that? The result is that the level of individual attention is desperately lacking.

I say to the members on the other side, get after the cabinet and have them increase the funding for the people who made sure we could enjoy the quality of life that we do in this province.

Mr. Dwight Duncan (Windsor-St Clair): I have a question for the associate minister of health. Your government funds residents in nursing homes far below most other provinces in this country and below states such as Maine, South Dakota, Michigan and Mississippi. In fact, our parents and grandparents who are being cared for in nursing homes get less direct nursing and therapy than anywhere else in this country. These members of our families are allowed $4.49 a day for food by this government. The children, grandchildren, friends and neighbours of these frail, elderly and sickresidents have lobbied your government to provide an additional $25 per day for each resident of an Ontario nursing home. You responded with $2.60 effective October 1 and $2.60 effective January 1, 2002. Given this, can you tell Ontario's families how the $2.2 billion corporate tax cut will benefit our frail and elderly neighbours who are in your care?

Hon Helen Johns (Minister without Portfolio [Health and Long-Term Care]): I refer this to the Minister of Health.

Hon Tony Clement (Minister of Health and Long-Term Care): I want to assure this House that we have increased funding for long-term-care facilities, both capital and operating. Indeed, we're up to $1.6 billion for 2001-02. The honourable member neglected to mention that we are one of the only jurisdictions that is reinvesting the medical equipment fund for our long-term-care facilities, which we wrung out of the federal government, with great reluctance, I might add.

Hon. Mr. Clement: We had to shame them into it. You're absolutely right. Shame on them. They should have done it automatically, and no help from you guys across the aisle there, I can tell you that much. You sit there and you bray and bray and bray and we have to do the hard work to make sure the federal government lives up to its commitments. That's our job, we know that, but you should do your job rather than kissing up to your federal cousins and doing nothing for the people of Ontario.

Mr. Duncan: The president of the Ontario non-profit nursing homes association said at this Legislature in February that, because of your funding decisions, the system will continue to be underfunded and plagued with problems. Your government has provided an average of less than 1% per year. Given the current projected rise in demand for these services, their operating problems will not be addressed. Minister, I was astounded to learn today that your government pays an average of $136 a day to house criminals in our jails, yet you only have $62 a day for the most frail, elderly and sick members of our families who are in the province's nursing homes. The fact is, Ontario is last in Canada and most of the western world in how it treats our family members in nursing homes; and it became that way under your government. Your callow and shallow answer to my previous question indicates and confirms your government's lack of care for these people. How can you defend a $2.2-billion cut in corporate taxes when thousands of our fellow citizens are in nursing homes that, by your definition -- by any capable definition -- says they're underfunded and deserving of a lot more?

Hon Mr. Clement: I've heard a lot of things in this House; now I have heard it all. Here is a party that, when they were in government, promised the world to the long-term-care sector. They were going to increase funding to provide 4,000 new chronic and acute care hospital beds, and they were in office for three years when they made that promise. What did they accomplish? Nada. Zilch, bubkes. That's what they accomplished. In the 1995 campaign, they promised to set up a committee to look into it. This government acted. We are proud that we are introducing and are building the most effective, the best capital program in the history of Ontario when it comes to nursing homes and long term care. That is our commitment. It's on the ground. It's being built for our seniors. We've made that commitment. We are sick of empty Liberal promises. We are acting for the people of Ontario.

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