Doug Ford Tories unveil health-care changes to free up hospitals but stress ‘Ontarians will always access health care with their OHIP card’

After hinting at radical surgery for Ontario's pandemic-ravaged health-care system, Premier Doug Ford is opting for a series of more minor procedures.

But Health Minister Sylvia Jones and Long-Term Care Minister Paul Calandra unveiled a suite of changes Thursday that did not appease critics who fear increased privatization.

We are exploring opportunities to improve the efficiency of surgical delivery, including a system for distributing high demand surgeries among all available surgeons," the ministers wrote in an 18-page Plan To Stay Open."

The plan expedites the accreditation of foreign-trained nurses, expands an existing pilot project that allows paramedics to treat more patients without transporting them to hospitals and avoid unnecessary hospitalizations," and promises to tackle the high rates hospitals pay for agency nurses."

We will also consider options for further increasing surgical capacity by increasing the number of OHIP-covered surgical procedures performed at independent health facilities," the ministers wrote.

Ontario is investing more to increase surgeries in paediatric hospitals and existing private clinics covered by OHIP, as well as more than 150,000 additional operating hours for hospital-based MRI and CT machines."

But the opposition New Democrats warned private, for-profit health care isn't the answer."

Privatizing our health care means most Ontarians will wait even longer for care as remaining staff are poached from the public system to work in for-profit clinics," said NDP MPP Doly Begum (Scarborough Southwest).

Jones countered by noting some of those independent health facilities that have existed in the province of Ontario for literally decades" can help to take some of the pressure off of our health-care partners."

Our goal is clear: to provide the best care possible for patients and residents while ensuring the resources and supports are in place to keep our province and our economy open," she told reporters at the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre.

We need to be bold, innovative and creative," the minister said, stressing Ontarians will always access health care with their OHIP card."

With mounting concerns about an expected winter surge" of COVID-19 or the flu, the ministers are hoping to free up an additional 2,500 hospital beds.

Based on advice from the office of the chief medical officer of health, we are taking immediate action to further increase bed capacity in long-term-care homes by right-sizing the number of COVID-19 isolation beds, based on community demand and COVID-19 risk levels," they wrote.

By the end of this summer, approximately 300 long-term-care beds that were set aside for COVID-19 isolation will be safely available for people on long-term-care wait lists, with a potential of 1,000 more beds available within six months," the ministers wrote.

As previously reported, the government is tabling legislation to support patients whose doctors have said they no longer need hospital treatment and should instead be placed in a long-term-care home, while they wait for their preferred home."

There will be mandatory guidelines used by placement coordinators to ensure patients continue to stay close to a partner, spouse, loved ones or friends, and ensure these patients won't be out of pocket for any cost difference between their temporary home and their preferred home," they continued.

Before implementing this policy, Ontario is consulting with its agencies and front-line partners on these placement guidelines. This new policy will provide patients with the care they need and a better quality of life in a more appropriate setting, while freeing up at least 250 hospital beds in the first six months alone for those who need them, and supporting better patient flow into the future.

To tackle the ongoing crisis that has temporarily closed some hospital emergency rooms, the government wants to avoid unnecessary hospitalization by expanding access to specialized supports that help people living in long-term care or while in their own home before their admission to long-term care."

Anthony Dale, president and CEO of Ontario Hospital Association, said the moves should help maintain access to health services during what is expected to be a challenging period."

Doris Grinspun, CEO of the Registered Nurses' Association of Ontario, welcomed moves to expedite the licencing of foreign-trained health professions.

The nursing crisis is deepening - yet there are thousands of internationally trained nurses (IENs) residing in Canada who have been waiting years for regulatory registration. RNAO commends the government's intention to accelerate the integration of IENs as one of the urgent actions required to address the nursing crisis," said Grinspun.

Interim NDP Leader Peter Tabuns has repeatedly said the Tories want more private involvement in health-care service delivery.

Robert Benzie is the Star's Queen's Park bureau chief and a reporter covering Ontario politics. Follow him on Twitter: @robertbenzie