Migrants In Ontario Aren’t Getting The Free Health Care They Were Promised
Emma Paling, The Huffington Post
New immigrants and undocumented workers are still being asked to cover their own health-care costs despite the Ontario government’s promise that this wouldn’t happen during the COVID-19 pandemic, advocates say.
“This is unfair because these are people who have been working and sustaining the economy,” said Loly Rico, the co-director of FCJ Refugee Centre in Toronto. “It’s a very high number of people that live in Toronto and need health coverage.”
FCJ Refugee Centre normally operates a health clinic for uninsured people, which saw about 15 patients a week and had a one-month waiting list before it closed because of the pandemic. After Ontario sent a directive telling hospitals to serve all patients, regardless of their insurance coverage, the centre’s health-care staff started sending patients to hospitals. [… ]