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By Allison Jones, The Canadian Press May 14, 2026 |
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Posted on CTV News |
Ontario’s new and more restrictive freedom-of-information laws have quashed another request, this time for documents that may have given a glimpse into potential hospital cuts.
More than 70 per cent of Ontario hospitals are forecasting deficits, and Health Minister Sylvia Jones has told them to come up with three-year plans to balance their budgets.
Any “low risk” cost-saving moves with no or “minimal” front-line reductions should be made immediately, Jones’ ministry told hospitals, and “high risk” moves with service impacts for patients should only be considered if all lower-risk options are exhausted.
Hospitals’ plans for how they were going to get to balance were due last year and The Canadian Press filed a request in November for documents related to that in the minister’s office.
The Ministry of Health gave themselves a 90-day extension to turn over the records, until March 10, but that date came and went with no further word from its freedom-of-information office. Several requests for updates went unanswered.
In the meantime, a bill to put the records of the premier, cabinet ministers and their staff outside of the reach of freedom-of-information requests became law, preventing future requests and also nullifying many requests actively being processed as the law is retroactive to 1988.
Read more at CTV News
