CUPE has condemned an announcement by the Ontario government that it will allow nursing home operators to raise fees for residents by 15 per cent. Ministry officials had recommended an increase of only 1 – 2 per cent.
“The Eves government is imposing what amounts to a tax on seniors, but instead of improving long-term care, the money from a 15 per cent hike in fees will impoverish seniors and line the pockets of private nursing home operators,” says CUPE Ontario president Sid Ryan.
“It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand that if you make profit the incentive and take away minimum standards, seniors lose,” says Ryan. “We owe them much better than that.”
“There is no accountability for where the money goes,” says Connie Welsh, chair of the Ontario Homes Bargaining Council. “What we have in our nursing homes is assembly line care for our clients. Our clients and their families will expect an improvement in care, but they don’t realize that this money is only going to improve the profit margin of private sector nursing home operators.”