Doug Ford's Healthcare Crisis: A Thinly Veiled Push for Privatization



Ontario’s healthcare system is in crisis—there’s no denying it. Long wait times, overcrowded hospitals, an understaffed workforce, and overwhelmed emergency rooms have left patients and healthcare workers frustrated and exhausted. Rather than responding with meaningful reforms that address the root causes of these issues, Premier Doug Ford seems to be using the crisis as an opportunity to quietly push for the privatization of healthcare services in the province. Make no mistake, this is not a solution to Ontario’s healthcare woes—it's a dangerous political maneuver that risks dismantling the very principles of universal, publicly funded healthcare that Ontarians hold dear.

A Crisis Manufactured for Privatization?

In July of 2024, the Ontario Nurses' Association (ONA) announced, based on data from the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI), that Ontario's shortage of nurses is worsening, with only 651 registered nurses (RNs) per 100,000 people. This is the lowest in the country and a drop from 661 last year. The Ford government has consistently claimed that Ontario’s healthcare crisis is an inevitable result of the COVID-19 pandemic, and while there is truth to the strain placed on the system by the pandemic, the roots of the crisis go deeper. Years of underfunding, cuts to hospital budgets, and staffing shortages have left the public healthcare system in Ontario stretched thin. But rather than investing in the public system and addressing these systemic problems head-on, Ford has seized the crisis as a pretext to expand private sector involvement in healthcare.

The government’s recent actions—such as the controversial Bill 60, which allows private clinics to provide publicly funded services like surgeries and diagnostic tests—are raising alarm bells. These steps are presented as “efforts to reduce wait times” or “increase efficiency,” but they may be a deliberate strategy to push more healthcare services into the hands of private corporations. By expanding private clinic access and outsourcing certain medical procedures, Ford is laying the groundwork for a two-tier system—one in which the rich can pay for faster care, and the rest of us are left to endure an overcrowded, underfunded public system.

The False Promises of Private Solutions

Ford’s government insists that these measures will help “fix” the healthcare crisis by reducing wait times and increasing the capacity of the system. But this is a classic case of using a crisis to justify the expansion of the private sector, at the expense of long-term public solutions. The problem with privatizing healthcare services, even in limited ways, is that it shifts the focus from providing universal care to maximizing profits. Private clinics, which are incentivized by financial gain, may not have the same commitment to equity or quality of care as public institutions do.

The promise that private sector involvement will reduce wait times is also highly questionable. Evidence from other provinces and countries that have experimented with privatization suggests that private providers often focus on the most straightforward, low-risk procedures while leaving complex and high-needs cases to the already burdened public system. This “cream-skimming” of patients means that the public system is left with the most expensive and complicated cases, further straining its resources.

Moreover, private healthcare providers often cherry-pick the most lucrative services, leaving the public system with a disproportionate number of patients who require more intensive care. Instead of relieving pressure on hospitals, privatization could exacerbate the problems, creating a fragmented healthcare system where access to quality care depends on your ability to pay.


The Real Cost? Increased Inequality

The shift toward privatization isn’t just a philosophical issue—it’s one that will affect real people, especially those from marginalized communities. Access to healthcare is already unequal in Ontario, with significant disparities in health outcomes based on income, race, and geography. Privatization would only exacerbate these inequalities, making it even more difficult for low-income Ontarians to access timely and necessary care.

By diverting public money into private pockets, Ford’s policies could leave the most vulnerable people in the province at an even greater disadvantage. Instead of using public funds to strengthen the public healthcare system, Ford’s approach ensures that wealthy individuals and private companies will continue to profit from the healthcare needs of Ontarians, while the rest of us struggle to get the care we need.

The Real Solution

The real solution to Ontario’s healthcare crisis isn’t more privatization—it’s a long-term investment in the public system. The Ford government should be prioritizing funding for hospitals, increasing support for healthcare workers, and ensuring that public healthcare remains publicly accountable. Rather than relying on private corporations to deliver essential services, the government should be strengthening the public system, addressing staffing shortages, and reducing the bureaucratic red tape that hinders effective care delivery.

Public healthcare has always been a cornerstone of Canadian identity, and it’s a system that works when properly funded and supported. Ford’s move to privatize certain services is a dangerous shift that could fundamentally change how Ontarians access healthcare. It’s a betrayal of the values that Canadians have long held dear—values that prioritize care based on need, not wealth.

A Dangerous Precedent

Doug Ford’s handling of Ontario’s healthcare crisis is a textbook example of how politicians can exploit a public emergency to push through ideological agendas. Instead of using the crisis as an opportunity to reform and improve the public healthcare system, Ford is using it as an excuse to expand private sector involvement and sow the seeds of privatization.

The consequences of this approach could be disastrous. Ontario’s healthcare system is already under pressure—privatization will only make things worse. It’s time for Ontarians to push back against these dangerous policies and demand that the government prioritize universal, publicly funded healthcare that serves everyone equally. The future of Ontario’s healthcare system depends on it.

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