September 23rd, 2020
September 23rd, 2020
QUEEN’S PARK – NDP MPP Catherine Fife (Waterloo) was at the Ontario legislature Wednesday to urge Doug Ford to get a grip on COVID-19 testing with families left waiting for hours and even days leading to chaotic scenes in Kitchener-Waterloo, and at assessment centres across the province.
The Premier said Tuesday, “it’s a free market society”, when asked whether he endorsed a private for-profit company that’s now offering COVID-19 testing for $400, so folks with deep pockets can skip the lineups the Ford government has done nothing to resolve.
“As families across the province line up for five, six, even eight hours with thousands of potentially sick people to get their tests, the premier declared that he was perfectly okay with a new private company that plans to offer people testing at home for a price,” said Fife during question period today at the legislature.
“We know the Conservatives wish that we had two-tier American-style health care here in Ontario – just ask the Minister of Long-Term Care – but does the premier really think that families should have to pay $400 for this government’s failure to plan?” Fife asked.
Fife said the Ford government’s plan doesn’t do nearly enough to prioritize the needs of families across the province. Parents are being forced to take days off work to take their kids to get tested which many simply can’t afford to do right now.
“In Waterloo Region – lineups for testing have gotten so bad that police were called in. I heard from a student who has taken transit to the testing centre four days in a row and still they haven’t been able to get tested. And this morning, the facility was full for the day at 7:15 a.m., with people arriving as early as 3 a.m.,” said Fife.
“People can’t afford to spend hundreds of dollars or sometimes days to get a COVID-19 test. Does the Premier expect everyday Ontarians to shell out hundreds of extra dollars for a private COVID test when they can barely afford to take the day off in the first place?”