Over 2,100 action alert messages have been sent to the Minister of Health urging her to reject selling Shouldice Hospital to a for-profit U.S. Conglomerate!

Send an action alert TODAY as we need your voice to speak out against for-profits!

RNAO has consistently and forcefully called on governments of all political stripes to re-commit to the Canada Health Act and the fundamental principle of a single-tier health-care system in which there is no place for profits.

That’s why RNAO is gravely alarmed that Centric Health, a rapidly growing health products company, announced last week its intention to purchase Thornhill’s Shouldice Hospital, well-known for treatment of hernias. Centric is controlled by Global Healthcare Investments and Solutions (GHIS), one of the largest private, for-profit health-care conglomerates in the world.

When an exception to the law against for-profit hospitals was made for the Shouldice, a family-founded and operated hospital that long pre-dated the Canada Health Act, it was understood to be “grand-parented” and subject to the understanding that clinics and hospitals in Ontario must be publicly-funded and not-for-profit.

This was made explicit by the Ontario Government in its recently released Action Plan for Health Care that pledged to “shift more procedures out of hospital and into non-profit community-based clinics,” citing the Kensington Eye Institute as an example of a not-for-profit clinic providing high-quality care through OHIP.

Ontarians need not-for-profit care that:
• does not cut corners to maximize return on shareholders’ investment;
• does not have a financial incentive to close the door on “unprofitable” patients;
• does not provide faster access for those who can afford it;
• does not expose Canada to lawsuits under NAFTA and other trade deals if future government regulations affect Centric’s profitability; and
• is accountable and operated with the transparency of a publicly-delivered not-for-profit.

It is unconscionable and totally unacceptable to stand by and allow Shouldice to be sold to a for-profit U.S. conglomerate. Is there anything we can do about it? YES. For the sale to proceed it must have the approval of the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care. Minister Matthews can and must say NO.

What Can You Do?
Please act today, time is short! Ask Health Minister Matthews NOT to let the Shouldice Hospital be sold to a huge U.S. conglomerate.
Email the letter below to Minister Matthews. A copy will be sent automatically to Premier Dalton McGuinty, PC Leader Tim Hudak, NDP Leader Andrea Horwath, PC health critic Christine Elliott and NDP health critic France Gelinas.

Feel free to edit the letter to share examples from your own nursing practice and/or life experiences on the impact of for-profit delivery of health services.

Please share this action alert with your colleagues, neighbours, friends and family and ask them to email as well.