Ontario is significantly expanding the number and range of medical procedures performed in privately run for-profit clinics as the province deals with major surgical backlog made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The move was announced by Premier Doug Ford and Health Minister Sylvia Jones at a news conference Monday.
You can watch live in the player above. There are connectivity issues at the venue, so you may experience some trouble watching the livestream.
The change will be introduced over three phases. The first will see surgical and diagnostic clinics in Ottawa, Kitchener-Waterloo and Windsor perform an additional 14,000 cataract operations each year, representing about 25 per cent of the province’s current backlog for the procedure.
Next, more private clinics will be able to offer MRI and CT imaging, as well as colonoscopies and endoscopies.
“These procedures will be non-urgent, low-risk and minimally invasive and, in addition to shortening wait times, will allow hospitals to focus their efforts and resources on more complex and high-risk surgeries,” the province said in a news release.
The government intends that by 2024, the third phase will see hip and knee replacements performed at independent clinics.
Various health-care professionals told CBC Toronto last week they are concerned that the plan would drain resources from publicly funded hospitals and benefit the owners of private-sector clinics without improving patient care.
The agency that regulates doctors in the province, the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario, said it was not informed of the government’s plans to implement the changes.
More to come.