St.Catharines Standard report mis-characterizes George Smitherman's disastrous LHIN's

The St.Catharines Standard on Aug.9, 2010 reported in "Hudak vows to scrap LHIN's" :

"PC Leader Tim Hudak is promising to scrap the Liberal government's controversial health-planning bodies.

His vow comes on the eve of a much-anticipated Ontario Ombudsman report on the Niagara-Hamilton Local Health Integration Networks (LHIN). Some residents in Niagara were outraged when the LHIN ordered hospital restructuring in Niagara led to the emergency rooms in Fort Erie and Port Colborne being changed into 24-hour prompt care centres.

"It is clear that Dalton McGuinty's LHIN model is broken and has to go," Hudak said Monday.

Marin's report looks at the decision-making process of the Hamilton Niagara Haldimand Brant LHIN including its approach to its mandate of "community engagement" in dealing with proposals for the restructuring of health services in Hamilton and the Niagara region. Marin's report will not comment on the policy decisions of the Hamilton and Niagara hospital sytems.

The Ombudsman office launched an investigation last year after receiving 37 complaints about the HNHB LHIN from residents, community associations, health-care professionals and a local MPP.

While the ombudsman cannot review the actual decisions, he can comment on the process.

"There is a lot of public concern about the accountability and transparency of the LHIN," Marin said when launching the investigation last year. "Are those concerns justified? That's what we're going to find out."

LHINs were set up by the provincial Liberal government to do regional health care planning."

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The last line of that report is odd: really, QMI - that's why George Smitherman "set up" the LHIN's - "to do regional health planning"?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Talk about toeing - and regurgitating - the Liberal party line - even now! Weren't they actually 'health-care-CUTTING' bodies??!!

The LHIN's were formed by Smitherman SO THAT McGUINTY'S LIBERALS could consolidate and cut health care expenditures - and, even better, so that they could be held blameless while doing so!!! Liberal Finance Minister Greg Sorbara outlined this very aim on May 18, 2004, in his first Liberal budget (see here; here): SORBARA SPECIFICALLY indicated that his Liberals were no longer going to put up with the previous Conservative government's health-care-spending INCREASES (yes: health-care increases - you read that correctly) - SORBARA said his aim was to CONTROL health care spending!!!

Come on, St.Catharines Standard QMI Jim Bradley Asslicks - don't pretend that this isn't so!!!!
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