MPP Arnott Votes Against Politically Charged Liberal Motion
Waterloo-Wellington MPP voted against a Liberal Private Member's resolution on home care on October 4 calling it overly political and unconstructive.
The motion, which was raised by Sandra Pupatello, MPP for Windsor West, was debated and defeated by the vote in the Ontario Legislature.
At issue is the need to restore funding to the Community Care Access Centres (CCACs) who deliver home care services in Ontario. Mr. Arnott raised the need to address funding on behalf of the CCAC of Waterloo Region in the Legislature on October 2, 2001.
“I voted against the Liberal motion because I can't support an effort that is based more so on scoring cheap political points than seeking a constructive solution,” declared Mr. Arnott.
Following his recent meeting with officials from the CCAC of Waterloo Region, Mr. Arnott made the following recommendations to the Government on their behalf when he spoke in the Ontario Legislature on October the 2 nd :
“It is time for the provincial government to take the steps necessary to address these problems by making sure that home care services are available to all who need them, that provincial home care funding is equitably distributed across the province, and that unnecessary administration costs don't eat into home care services that people need.”
Mr. Arnott's provincial riding of Waterloo-Wellington includes all of Wellesley, Wilmot and Woolwich Townships, a southwestern part of the City of Kitchener, and much of Wellington County. LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF ONTARIO
Official Record of Debate
(Hansard)
HEALTH CARE FUNDING
October 2, 2001
Mr Ted Arnott (Waterloo-Wellington): Earlier this year I conducted a survey of my constituents in Waterloo-Wellington. The results were tabulated over the summer and I have received strong and clear advice about health care. Here are the results:
"Is the Ontario government managing health care effectively?" Fifty-four per cent of the respondents said no.
"Is the province spending enough on health care?" Forty-six per cent said no and only 30% said yes.
On a more positive note, my constituents reported favourable personal experiences with the health care system in Waterloo-Wellington, indicating a satisfaction rating of 54%.
The responses indicated strong support for my private member's resolution, which called for a restoration of the federal government's cuts to health care, at 79%, and 81% supported my demand for an escalator clause that would increase federal funding to keep pace with our rising costs.
Recently, concerns about home care funding in Ontario were brought to my attention at meetings with representatives of the Community Care Access Centre of Waterloo Region. As part of a province-wide measure, the provincial home care budget has been frozen at last year's level, while demands for services increase steadily and funding inadequacies mean that home care services in some individual instances have been reduced.
Some patients are receiving less care and some aren't receiving the care they need because they're on a waiting list. With the budget for home care frozen across the province, more patients will need hospital or long-term-care beds, the very expensive and sometimes unavailable options that home care was designed to replace, where appropriate.
LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF ONTARIO
It is time for the provincial government to take the steps necessary to address these problems by making sure that home care services are available to all who need them, that provincial home care funding is equitably distributed across the province, and that unnecessary administration costs don't eat into home care services that people need.
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