An Ontario’s Auditor General’s report [PDF] criticizes Brampton Civic Hospital, a public-private partnership that could have been built for millions less.
At the top of Jim McCarter’s list of concerns was the cost of borrowing money to build the privatized hospital. The province would have saved $200 million if it had borrowed the money to build the hospital directly.
McCarter also said:
- Construction would have cost $50 million less if the hospital had been built by the province.
- The government could have saved “tens of millions” of dollars if they had not privatized laundry, food, cleaning and security services.
“We take no solace in knowing that two Ontario governments wasted hundreds of millions of dollars on privatization - money that could have been used to improve the health care system,” said Paul Moist. “But after warning people about this since 2002, it’s a relief to finally get some validation.”
More on problems with Brampton’s P3 hospital:
- The Ontario Health Coalition on the auditor’s report
- P3 hospital costs soar, services slashed
- Brampton hospital’s costs balloon
- Privatized hospital costs $300 million more as P3
- Issues raised by public-private partnerships in Ontario’s hospital sector
- Profit no cure for Ontario hospitals
See also the reaction from Nova Scotia and British Columbia.