New report shows Ottawa hospitals’ budget deficits undermining timely access for patients

CCPA and CUPE will be revealing local data on wait-times and budget shortfalls for Ottawa hospitals at Friday morning press conference

OTTAWA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The majority of Ontario’s 136 hospitals have carried operational deficits since 2022, and this puts an already precarious public system at risk, says new analysis from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA).

In Failure, By Design: Ontario’s deepening hospital funding crisis, CCPA’s senior researcher Andrew Longhurst finds that rising hospital costs of six per cent annually and government underfunding are creating a toxic situation that undermines the goal of offering timely access to care for patients. For instance, 90 per cent of patients spent 44 hours in the emergency department awaiting hospital admission in 2024/25 – a 52 per cent increase over five years.

At the Ottawa press conference on Friday, Longhurst will reveal detailed findings from the report during a press conference including data on The Ottawa Hospital and other hospitals in the city.

He will be joined by Michael Hurley, the president of CUPE’s Ontario Council of Hospital Unions (OCHU-CUPE) to speak about the report’s recommendations to address the staffing and capacity shortfall in the sector.

When: 10 a.m. on Friday, May 15

Where: McNabb Recreation Centre - 180 Percy St., Ottawa

What: Media conference to release findings of new research report about hospital budget deficits

Who: Andrew Longhurst, senior researcher, Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
Michael Hurley, president, Ontario Council of Hospital Unions (OCHU/CUPE)

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