Ontario Providing More Funding for Hospital Care and New Beds in Durham Region

Today, Lorne Coe, MPP for Whitby, and Peter Bethlenfalvy MPP for Pickering-Uxbridge announced that the following hospitals in the Region of Durham will receive additional operating funding this fiscal year:

• Lakeridge Health will receive an additional $12.3 million starting in 2022/23, which represents an increase of 2.6 percent to funding last fiscal
• Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences will receive an additional $2.8 million starting in 2022/23, which represents an increase of 2 percent to funding last fiscal

This is part of the Ontario government’s $827 million additional investment to hospitals across the province, representing a four per cent increase from last year. This will ensure all publicly funded hospitals receive a minimum two per cent increase to their operating budgets to help them better meet patient needs, while building a stronger, more resilient health care system.

“Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, our local hospitals have gone above and beyond to provide exceptional care to patients and families in Durham Region,” said Lorne Coe, MPP for Whitby, and Chief Government Whip. “This new investment is just one way Ontario is supporting high-quality and timely access to health care to ensure we have the capacity to stay open.”

"As part of our Plan to Stay Open, our government is continuing to build a stronger health care system for Ontarians," said Peter Bethlenfalvy, MPP for Pickering-Uxbridge. "This funding will ensure hospitals in Durham Region can continue to provide excellent care for patients and families."

Over the last four years, the Ontario government has made significant investments in Ontario’s hospitals as part of its plan to build a stronger, more resilient health care system that is better able to respond to crisis.

This includes overall sector increases four years in a row, representing a total provincial 
investment of $2.5 billion since 2019. 

“Ontario’s hospitals have been unwavering in their commitment to protect the health and wellbeing of Ontarians, and our government is committed to ensuring that they have the resources needed to recover from the pandemic and meet the ongoing needs of the communities they serve,” said Christine Elliott, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. “By increasing investments in hospitals provincewide, our government is helping to ensure that patients have access to the high-quality care they need, when and where they need it.”

In addition, as part of its plan to stay open, the government is investing $15,208,000 to add 88 new patient beds to Lakeridge Health. These new beds are part of a capital plan expansion with more than 50 major projects that will add 3,000 new beds over 10 years and support the continuation of over 3,100 acute and post-acute beds in hospitals and alternate health care facilities, and hundreds of new adult, paediatric and neonatal critical care beds. Since the outset of the pandemic, the government has added 777 more intensive-care unit hospital beds with the capacity to now handle 2,448 critical care patients. 

QUOTES
"We are appreciative of the Ontario government's financial commitment to Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences, which enables us to better meet patient needs while also contributing to the development of a more robust and resilient health care system. By increasing investments in hospitals throughout the province, we ensure that patients have access to high-quality care 
when and where they need it. " 
- Karim Mamdani, President and CEO, Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences

“We are grateful to our provincial government partners for their continued support and commitment to our hospital teams. This funding will help us to continue to achieve our vision, One System. Best Health. and not only provide the highest quality of care to patients, but also ensure residents of Durham Region are able to continue to receive timely access to critically needed acute care services.”
- Cynthia Davis, President and CEO, Lakeridge Health

QUICK FACTS 

• To support growing demands on the health care system, Ontario’s investments over the next 10 years will lead to $40 billion in health infrastructure across the province. These investments will increase capacity in hospitals, build new health care facilities, and renew existing hospitals and community health centres.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

• Improving Health Care in Ontario
• Hallway Health Care: A System Under Strain

MPP MEDIA CONTACTS
Shannon Weir
Office of Lorne Coe MPP
Whitby
905-430-1141
@email

Office of Peter Bethlenfalvy MPP,
Pickering – Uxbridge
905-509-0336
@email