Ontario Taking Immediate Action to Improve Long-Term Care System

WOODSTOCK – Today, Dr. Merrilee Fullerton, Minister of Long-Term Care, issued the following statement regarding Justice Gillese, Commissioner of the Public Inquiry’s final report of the Public Inquiry into the Safety and Security of Residents in the Long-Term Care Homes System:

“On behalf of the government, I would like to extend my deepest condolences to the families and friends of the victims and all of the impacted communities. Thank you for participating in this inquiry. Words cannot replace your loss nor describe the pain you have endured throughout this ordeal and time leading up to today.

I would also like to thank Justice Gillese and her team for their diligence and commitment to delivering an evidence-based independent inquiry to the people of Ontario.

I take Justice Gillese’s recommendations very seriously and together with the Attorney General, the Minister of Health, the Solicitor General, and the full support of the government, we will be comprehensively reviewing the recommendations over the coming weeks to determine next steps. Today, as recommended by Justice Gillese, we are committing to submit a report to the Ontario Legislature by July 31, 2020 on progress made on the report’s recommendations, as well as continued updates leading up to the submission.

As well, our government will provide new funding to help address the recommendations of the report. We will consult with the long-term care sub-committee of the Premier’s Council on Improving Healthcare and Ending Hallway Medicine on policies as we act on the recommendations.

As recommended by Justice Gillese, our government will continue to provide counselling services to the victim and the victims’ families and loved ones who were originally approved by the Commission, for a period of two years.

Under the leadership of Premier Doug Ford, our government is committed to improving Ontario’s long-term care system to bring it into the 21st century so we can ensure people across the province receive the quality, safe care they need, when they need it.

Once again, on behalf of the government I wish to extend our sincere sympathies to the families, friends, and victims affected and we will work to ensure the safety of residents and confidence in Ontario’s long-term care system.”