Dear Constituents,
Last week, after having paid tribute to Queen Elizabeth II, the Legislative Assembly was adjourned. It will be returning on October 25th.
On September 19th, Her Majesty the Queen was laid to rest. She will be remembered for her leadership and dedication to a lifetime of service.
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Healthcare: The More Beds, Better Care Act, 2022
Our government came to office in 2018 on the promise to end hallway healthcare in Ontario. The way to do this is to ensure that every type of patient within our healthcare system can access the care and services they need.
Within our hospitals, seniors who have currently been discharged continue to occupy acute care beds, despite not needing this level of care. This is a problem on both sides: seniors would receive more adequate care within long-term care institutions, and patients who need acute care beds are unable to access one.
There are currently over 6,000 patients, who have been discharged from hospital, but are nonetheless occupying hospital beds within Ontario. This is the highest number ever and is 1000 more than just 3 months ago. We need space in our hospitals to care for patients with acute needs, including any who might require hospitalization due to respiratory illnesses like COVID in the upcoming fall season. By transitioning patients who have already been discharged from hospital into long-term care, we both ensure that their needs will be better met, and that the people trying to get into hospitals, many of whom are also seniors, will have access to a hospital bed if needed.
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When we came to office, there were 36,000 people on a waitlist for long-term care. We immediately started building and upgrading 58,000 long term care beds. We also enhanced long-term care staffing, increased the average care per resident to 4 hours per day, and doubled the number of inspectors. We gave long term care homes several million dollars more per year to increase staff including approximately $10M extra at Baycrest and Villa Colombo. Staffing funding increases will continue each year.
Our government’s Bill 7 does not take away seniors’ choice about which long-term care facility they want to stay in. Rather, they retain their place waiting for their preferred long-term care, and in the interim, rather than waiting in hospital they will be moved to another local long-term care (LTC) home which meets their needs. In all cases, patients will receive the greater benefit of dedicated long-term care and resident living than they would if they remained in hospital. LTC placement coordinators will work with the discharged patient (or substitute decision maker) to find the best interim placement for residents who cannot go to their first choice home. Other provinces have had a similar policy for years and Ontario is only following their lead now. Hospitals in Ontario have been allowed to charge patients who refuse to leave after being discharged since the 1960s. Some have charged nothing, and others have charged the actual cost per day of the bed which is closer to $1600 per day. The $400 fee implemented by our government standardizes the amount and the charge across the board so that it is fair to everyone.
In order to make our healthcare system provide the best care to all patients, our government is working on solutions to fix each area. The system needs to function as one with each area providing care appropriate to its patients/residents needs. Only then can we ensure that seniors and other Ontarians get the care that they deserve.
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Investing in Community Safety
The Ontario government is investing almost $1.8 million to help 20 police services across the province expand video surveillance systems and better protect communities from the threat of gun and gang violence.
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The funding is being delivered through the Ontario Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) Grant Program and will be used to replace outdated equipment, expand or enhance current technology, and install new or additional CCTV surveillance cameras in areas where gun and gang violence and correlated crimes, such as drug and human trafficking, are most prevalent.
“Our government is determined to provide police services with the tools and resources they need to keep Ontarians safe,” said Solicitor General Michael Kerzner. “CCTV surveillance systems are an important part of local police work to detect, prevent and deter criminal activity, especially in areas of gun and gang violence and other serious crimes. This funding will help police services strengthen CCTV capacity and improve crime prevention efforts to better protect communities.”
Launched in August 2020, the Ontario CCTV Grant program is part of Ontario’s Guns, Gangs and Violence Reduction Strategy. The grant represents a $6 million investment over three fiscal years, from 2020-2021 to 2022-2023.
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| My constituency office is open Monday to Friday from 10AM to 4PM. If you have any questions or concerns we’re readily available to assist. You can also reach us by phone at (416) 781-2395 or by email at robin.martin@pc.ola.org. |
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Warmest Wishes,
 Robin Martin, MPP
Eglinton-Lawrence
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