Election debate on seniors issues in Sudbury
Issues facing seniors in the Sept. 20 federal election were the focus of a debate in Sudbury Tuesday. The groups CARP and Friendly to Seniors Sudbury hosted the event.
"Both are advocacy groups for seniors and, as most of us know, there are more seniors in Sudbury relative to population than any other city in Ontario -- and seniors vote," said John Lindsay, the interim chair of CARP and the president of Friendly to Seniors Sudbury.
The Ontario Health Coalition Sudbury chapter wants to phase out for profit long term care in favour of public ownership and points to what happened in the pandemic.
"There were the most deaths that happened in long term care happened in for-profit facilities," said Dot Klein, of the coalition.
Candidates were give the opportunity to respond.
"The divide between the devastation was actually quite clear – for-profit homes performed so much worse than public … owned homes," said Andreane Chenier, the Nickel Belt NDP candidate.
"And so the NDP we are committed to removing the profit from healthcare."
"The issue is ensuring that there is accountability, there is standards and the federal government has stepped up to the plate," said Marc Serré, Liberal incumbent in Nickel Belt. "We have put over $3 billion on the table," said Marc Serré.
"We will be hiring more personal care workers -- 50,000 more -- across Canada. We will also be increasing the wages," said Viviane Lapointe, the Sudbury Liberal candidate.
"Private public partnerships can work, but the key is regulation and robust funding mechanisms to ensure that whatever model of long term care provinces chooses to pursue, that they are supported," said Charles Humphrey, the Nickel Belt Conservative candidate.
Candidates were also asked if they support national pharmacare.
"No one should be forced to choose between the medicine that they need and their next meal, so we definitely support pharmacare," said Nadia Verrelli, the Sudbury NDP candidate.
"National pharmacare is not a project that we need to get moving now," said Ian Symington, the Sudbury Conservative candidate. "I don't think there is a lot of money in this country. We are in heavy deficits."
Concerns were also raised about skyrocketing real estate prices, high rents and the cost of living in long term care.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.
Humanist group threatening to sue Vancouver over council prayers
The B.C. Humanist Association has threatened legal action against the City of Vancouver for allowing prayers at council, following a similar warning issued earlier this month to a smaller community on Vancouver Island.
LHSC performs a Canadian first in robot-assisted direct lateral spine surgery
Spine surgery may never be the same for people with chronic back pain and other physical ailments.