Government figures suggest 3 million at risk of losing their family doctor, up to 4.1 million currently not signed up with a family doctor.
QUEEN’S PARK — A hidden government report, uncovered today by Ontario’s Liberals, reveals new details about the scale of Doug Ford’s health care crisis: suggesting 3 million people are at risk of losing their family doctor, and up to 4.1 million people are not signed on to their own family doctor.
“Doug Ford has hidden the true extent of his health care crisis, leaving millions of people without a family doctor or at risk of losing theirs,” said Bonnie Crombie, Leader of Ontario’s Liberals. “He has deliberately destroyed public health care in our province, all while his rich friends and Conservative insiders continue to benefit.”
“It is time for Doug Ford to be clear: how many people in this province don’t have a family doctor? Why is he covering it up?”
The report, shared with Ontario’s Liberals by a concerned party in the health care sector, provides scathing details from the Ministry of Health on the health care crisis in Ontario, suggesting:
- At least 2,336 physicians, serving 3,062,696 people, are on the verge of retirement in the next five years;
- 205 Ontario communities without even a single family doctor signing up patients;
- Up to 4.1 million people are not rostered to their own family doctor, more than 1-in-4 people in Ontario.
“This government report shows the devastating impact Doug Ford has had on health care in Ontario,” said Dr. Adil Shamji, MPP for Don Valley East, and Ontario Liberal Health Critic. “Primary care is our first line of defence. Doug Ford’s failure to recruit, train, and retain family doctors, threatens our entire system and is putting people’s health at risk all across this province.”