“ The primary care situation in Ontario is dire, with 5.6 million Ontarians either without a family doctor or at risk of losing theirs. ”

MPP Lucille Collard Questions Minister of Health on the Issue of Shortage of Health Care Professionals

Dec 5, 2024

MPP Lucille Collard :

  • Funding Insufficiency: "The government only provided a quarter of the funding to the nurse practitioner-led clinic in my riding," leaving thousands in Ottawa–Vanier without primary care.

  • Healthcare Crisis: “The primary care situation in Ontario is dire, with 5.6 million Ontarians either without a family doctor or at risk of losing theirs.”

Health Minister Sylvia Jones :

  • Progress Achieved: “In Ontario, we are now over 90%” of residents attached to a primary care practitioner, compared to the national average of 85.6%.

  • Future Commitment: "We intend to continue making progress to ensure that every Ontario resident...will have one [a primary care practitioner] in the next five years."

Issue : Shortage of Health Care Professionals

Root Cause 1: Inadequate Compensation for Healthcare Professionals

  • Proposed Solution: Increase salaries for nurse practitioners and other healthcare workers to make the profession more attractive.

  • Bills/Motions/Questions:

    • Bill 124 (Protecting a Sustainable Public Sector for Future Generations Act): Criticized for capping wage increases at 1%.

    • Questions by MPP LUCILLE COLLARD highlighting stagnant nurse practitioner salaries since 2020.

  • Status:

    • Bill 124 passed in 2019, but legal challenges continue regarding its constitutionality and impact​

    • Questions raised remain unresolved in terms of policy changes.

Root Cause 2: Shortage of Training and Residency Positions

  • Proposed Solution: Expand medical school seats and residency programs across Ontario.

  • Bills/Motions/Questions:

    • Government initiative to establish new medical schools in York Region and Brampton, and expand existing programs in Scarborough.

    • Motion 177 (MPP ADIL SHAMJI): Calls for a $3.1 billion investment in training 3,100 new family physicians by 2029.

  • Status:

    • Medical school expansions are part of ongoing provincial budgets.

    • Motion 177 is under debate with no voting record yet​

Read Full Conversation

  • MPP Lucille Collard : Two weeks ago, I asked the Minister of Health why the government only provided a quarter of the funding to the nurse practitioner-led clinic in my riding. In response, the minister scoffed and implied that the thousands of people in my riding who are still waiting for primary care should be happy with what they got. Well, what they got is not sufficient. The minister knows, because I showed her, on a map, that there are no clinics in Ottawa–Vanier. People who don’t have access to a family doctor have to go to the hospital. Mr. Speaker, with all due respect to the minister, I will not stop advocating for access to primary care until every person in my riding has their own family doctor. That’s why I have much more faith in the plan recently announced by our Ontario Liberal Party to make that a reality. The primary care situation in Ontario is dire, with 5.6 million Ontarians either without a family doctor or at risk of losing theirs. My question to the Minister of Health is simple. Does this government really believe that every person in Ontario should have access to primary care, and what are they doing about it?

    Source : OLA

  • Hon. Sylvia Jones: I really appreciate the opportunity to answer this question, because today, the CIHI data—which is the Canadian Institute for Health Information—actually showed that Ontario is making significant progress. In Canada, we have 85.6% of Canadians attached to a primary care practitioner; in Ontario, we are now over 90%. The plan we have is working. And of course, starting this past Monday, we have Dr. Jane Philpott, who is now continuing the progress that we have made. We intend to continue making progress to ensure that every Ontario resident who wishes to have a primary care practitioner will have one in the next five years, because of the work that we’ve already started.

  • Lucille Collard: Mr. Speaker, in response to my question two weeks ago, the minister also said that this government has increased compensation for nurse practitioners. However, nurse practitioners tell me that their current salary levels have not been increased since April 2020—not even a cost-of-living increase. Even when this government capped wage increases at 1% through the unconstitutional Bill 123, nurse practitioners still didn’t get that 1% increase. If this government thinks that nurse practitioners are a valuable part of our health care system, why have their salaries not been increased in almost five years?

  • Hon. Sylvia Jones: I have to compare and contrast. We have a representative of the Liberal Party, who, when they were in power, cut residency positions, medical seats in the province of Ontario—50 every year. You are now seeing the cumulative effect of that decision—450 physicians who either had to go elsewhere to get their training or choose a different pathway. Compare and contrast that to expanded medical seats in every single medical school in the province of Ontario, two new medical schools in York region and in the city of Brampton, an expanded medical school in Scarborough, increased seats for nurse practitioners and registered nurses. We are making the changes that, frankly, either your government chose to ignore or didn’t care enough to do anything about.

Related Bills