Concern at North Bay City Council with what could happen if the Wynne Government accepts the recommendations from a a provincial panel on public health.

They suggest replacing the 36 health units in Ontario with 14 organizations that would be very similar in terms of geography to the local health integration networks.

This council passed a motion opposing the recommendation and sent that motion to the government.

Councillor Mac Bain says if this comes to pass there would be less autonomy for the Medical Officer of Health

“They’ll be less re-active to address health concerns. The medical officer of health will have less autonomy to make decisions in a hurry when there’s a public health crisis.”

He says there would be less autonomy for the health boards too.

“If there are fewer boards of health there are less opportunities for council representation on those boards. We would no longer be allowed to be chair or vice chairs or head up the finance committee.”

The motion was also sent to MPP Vic Fedeli, the Association of Municipalities of Ontario and the Federation of Northern Ontario Municipalities.

Filed under: health-concerns, mac-bain