Ontario Medical Students Warn Against Cuts to Public Health

OMSA is concerned about the province's plan to substantially cut support for municipal health units by reducing the provincial share of program funding. Several municipalities, regional governments, and other healthcare stakeholders including the Ontario Medical Association have also expressed their concern about reducing support for local public health units. The vague nature of recent healthcare cuts have left the future of our provincial healthcare system unclear to both the general population as well as to healthcare students and professionals. OMSA encourages a transparent and evidence-based approach to major funding decisions regarding healthcare-related services.

Public health units across the province provide an essential array of services, including overseeing food safety, immunization programs, infectious disease prevention and control, substance abuse programs, sexual health initiatives, and school health programs. Furthermore, the recent announcement to cut public health funding is ill-timed considering the resurgence of vaccine-preventable diseases across Canada. We urge the Provincial Government to reconsider the financial implications of cuts to public health in Ontario. OMSA is particularly concerned that public health cuts will hit hardest for marginalized Ontarians.

Click here to read the full press release from OMSA.

For more information on OMSA's advocacy efforts, please visit our Advocacy Priorities page, or contact representation@omsa.ca.