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EVENT: CODE RED: Ontario-wide urgent call-out to save our public health care
Posted: September 8, 2025
(September 8, 2025)
The Ford government is privatizing our public hospitals. That is not an exaggeration.
When they privatized cataract surgeries, Ford appeared all over TV promising that people would never pay with their credit card, only their OHIP card. That was a lie. All over Ontario, seniors are now routinely charged thousands of dollars in the private for-profit eye surgery clinics.
We heard from an 80-year old woman who was told she had to make a down payment of $1,500 followed by almost $11,000 for her surgery. We heard from a 71-year old who had to come out of retirement to work to pay for his surgery. We heard from Maureen, a widow whose eyesight was failing, who was charged almost $7,000 for her eye surgery. She had to take out a loan. Everywhere I go, every event at which I make a speech, people come up to me and tell me about how their mother or father was charged thousands for their cataract surgery.
Now, Ford wants to expand his privatization plan to orthopedic surgeries — hips and knees, shoulders and so on — as well as MRIs, CTs and other diagnostics and surgeries. Just imagine the tens of thousands of dollars they are going to charge patients.
The hardship and suffering caused by this privatization is exactly what public medicare was set up to stop.
We have made formal complaints, held press conferences with the patients who have been extra-billed illegally, written letters, asked for meetings with the Minister and Premier. It isn’t that they don’t know this is happening. They are pretending it isn’t and ignoring it, as long as they are able to do so.
We are going to lose public medicare if we don’t ramp up our fight back.
Please pay attention and spread the word. It matters.
CODE RED
If we don’t fight privatization now, we are going to lose our public health care.
Make the fightback very visible. People need to know there is an issue if we are going to be able to mount political pressure. Every person matters in this. Help make a visible show of public opposition to privatization so we can build the fightback into something that cannot be ignored.
Don’t see your town on the list? Please contact us at info@OntarioHC.ca if you want to help make an event happen.
Cross-province visible roadside rallies against Ford’s privatization of our health care:
GTA three events
Toronto
Wednesday, Sept 24 from 4:30 pm to 6 pm – human chain on Hospital Row (University Ave, south of College St.)
Contact: greatertorontohc@
Mississauga
Saturday, Sept 27 at 11:15 am to 1:30 pm – Cawthra Rd & QEW overpass
Contact: Ken Cole mississaugahc@gmail.com 416-524-8335
Oshawa
Monday, Sept 29 at 1 pm – Alexandra Park near Oshawa Hospital
Contact: Lance koach_14@yahoo.com 905-431-0823 or president20226364@hotmail.com
London & area two events
Contact: Peter Bergmanis pbergmanis@rogers.com 519-860-4403
London
Thursday, Sept 25 at 11 am – Wellington Rd overpass at Highway 401
St. Thomas
Saturday, Oct 4 at 10 am – Talbot & Manitoba St, CASO Station area
Hamilton
Contact: Janina Lebon janinalebon44@gmail.com 905-545-5514
Hamilton
Friday, Sept 26 at 3:30 pm – Office of MPP Monica Ciroello, 1030 Upper James Street
Grey-Bruce two events
Contact: Brenda Scott greybrucehc@gmail.com 519-375-5812
Kincardine
Saturday, Sept 27 from 11 am to 1 pm – Kincardine Davidson Park
Owen Sound
Saturday, Sept 27 from 11 am to 1 pm – Owen Sound Municipal Office, 808 2nd Ave E.
Sarnia
Contact: June Weiss junebug111@hotmail.com
Sarnia
Saturday, Sept 27 from 11 am to 1 pm – London & Murphy Rd.
Windsor
Contact: Patrick Hannon windsorhealthcoalition@gmail.
Windsor
Saturday, Sept 27 at 11 am – Ouellette Ave & Tecumseh Rd.
Kingston
Contact: Joan kingstonhealthcoalition@gmail.
Kingston
Monday, Sept 29 from 4 pm to 5 pm – Bath Rd & Princess St. (also known as the traffic circle)
Kitchener
Contact: Jim waterlooregionhealthcoalition@
Kitchener
Saturday, Oct 4 at 11 am – Sportsworld, 4285 King St E. on the public sidewalk near the Tim Hortons & the new CTV offices
Oxford County one rally per week for the next month as follows:
Contact: Bryan Smith at bryasmit@oxford.net 226-228-8309
Ingersoll
Friday, Sept 12 at 3 pm – Thames & Charles
Beachville
Friday, Sept 19 at 3 pm – Embro & Beachville Rd.
Tillsonburg
Friday, Sept 26 at 3 pm – Highway 19 & Bridge St.
Embro
Friday, Oct 3 at 3 pm – Embro Rd at Highlander
Tavistock
Friday, Oct 10 at 3 pm – Post Office, 5 Woodstock St. S.
Woodstock
Friday, Oct 17 at 3 pm – Huron & Dundas St.
Ingersoll
Friday, Oct 24 at 3 pm – Thames & Charles
Norwich
Friday, Oct 31 at 3 pm – Main St & Oxford Rd 59
Niagara
Contact: Sue niagarahealthcoalition@yahoo.ca 905-932-1646
Niagara
Saturday, Oct 18 at 11 am – Port Colborne General Hospital, 260 Sugarloaf
