NEWS RELEASE
ONTARIO NDP CAUCUS
************************
NDP MPP Wayne Gates (Niagara Falls) called for an end to parking fees at public hospitals across the province of Ontario.
“In Niagara, residents are paying out-of-control rates for parking at our local hospitals,” said Gates. “Meanwhile, it’s no secret we have an affordability crisis in the province of Ontario. Costs for rents, groceries, gas, and much more have skyrocketed over the last few years. We shouldn’t be adding an extra cost to people’s daily lives and forcing families to choose between visiting a loved one at a hospital or making ends meet.”
“Patients should be focused on getting better. Families should be focused on caregiving and support. And front-line health care workers shouldn’t have to worry about paying to go to work every single day. I believe that we shouldn’t be charging nurses, doctors, patients, and families fees to park at a hospital. MPPs under this government don’t pay to park at Queen’s Park. So why should nurses, doctors, and front-line workers have to pay to go to work?”
“We know Ontario's health care spending was the lowest in Canada per capita and that this government is underfunding public health care by over $21 billion by 2028. Ford should reverse the underfunding, provide hospital systems with the funding they need, and ensure no one – patients, families and workers alike – have to worry about paying for parking at a hospital.”
************************
