Thousands show up at Queen’s Park over Healthcare system restructuring

Thousands of people turned out at Queens Park today, upset about the restructuring of the healthcare system by the Ford government. The rally brought together health care workers and patients from across the province. They walked to the doorstep of provincial power, thousands of Ontarians worried about their healthcare system.

Organized by a coalition of health care workers, patients and stakeholder groups, protesters say they don’t want any cuts to the system including reductions to public health units and merging ambulance services.

A crush of people have packed the lawn here in front of the provincial legislature, listening to dozens of labour leaders politicians, health care workers and patients express their concerns about the system. Many fear it’s the beginning of a move towards privatization.

The government once again insisted it’s investing in the public system, and says the protesters shouldn’t be concerned about privatization. Ford campaigned on promises to end hallway medicine and increase long term care beds. Since being elected, his government has dissolved all of the province’s local health integration networks, as well as six administrative bodies, replacing them with a single oversight agency to be called Ontario Health.

The government says it is spending twenty-seven billion over 10-years on health care infrastructure among other investments in the system.