Ontario Premier Ford speaks alongside Maritime premiers on Canada's health-care system | FULL

Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Monday he wanted to see a "Team Canada" approach to solving the ongoing national health-care crisis, saying the provinces, territories and the federal government need to work together in collaboration with health-care partners to find solutions.

Ford spoke alongside Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston, New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs and Prince Edward Island Premier Dennis King following a summit on health-care in Moncton.

This comes as Ontario's own system has been strained by staff shortages in recent weeks, forcing some emergency rooms to even close for hours or days at a time.

Last week, Ontario Health Minister Sylvia Jones’ announced a plan to stabilize the health-care system includes increasing surgeries performed at private clinics, but covered by OHIP, covering the exam and registration fees for internationally trained nurses, and sending patients waiting for a long-term care bed to a home not of their choosing.

Language in the document suggests more of a role for privately delivered but publicly covered services, with the government saying it will invest more to increase surgeries in pediatric hospitals and existing private clinics covered by OHIP. It is also considering options for further increasing surgical capacity by increasing the number of those procedures performed at “independent health facilities.”

The Maritimes has also been facing its own pressures with doctor shortages, delays to surgeries and recurring emergency room closures.

Ford and his Maritime counterparts also spoke about the proposed dental care program that the federal government is exploring, with each calling for more details on the plan while also stressing Ottawa should put the primary focus on the ongoing health-care system crisis. King added he would like to see Ottawa focus on the current system by expanding and strengthening it, and pointed to his province's own system as a good example.

For more info, please go to https://globalnews.ca/news/9076089/ontario-nova-scotia-new-brunswick-pei-premiers-health-care-summit/

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