Email Your MPP!
We encourage everyone to email their MPP! As the emails start to fill inboxes across Canada, our members of provincial parliament will start paying attention and realize this is an important issue to Canadians. While you're checking the information for you MPP, feel free to note down their phone number, and give them a call letting them know you support the elimination of the three month waiting period for new immigrants to Ontario.
Who's my MPP?
If you don't know your electoral district, use this website to help you find out: http://fyed.elections.on.ca/fyed/en/form_page_en.jsp
Once you know your district, go to: http://www.ontla.on.ca/web/members/members_current.do?locale=en&channel_id=%7B923146e7-4d81-42a8-99f0-e61f5ab50387%7D&lang=en - Click on the name of your MPP based on your riding, and find their email address.
Then, copy paste the following into your email using your MPP's email address and click send! Don't forget to cc us.
To: [Your MPP's email address - see link above to find this]; dmatthews.mpp.co@liberal.ola.org; dmcguinty.mpp.co@liberal.ola.org
CC: righttohealthcarecoalition@gmail.com
I would like to bring your attention to a pressing issue affecting Ontarians. Currently in Ontario, new immigrants have to undergo a three month waiting period before they can have access to our most cherished service, health care. This policy came into place in 1994, and I feel it's time for it to go. Below are some reasons why I support a complete elimination of the 3-month waiting period for new immigrants to Ontario:
1. It's the right thing to do!
Asking immigrants who have waited years to come to Canada to wait 3 more months for health care when they start paying taxes on arrival is just unfair! New immigrants have enough to worry about. We should welcome them into Canada, not burden them upon arrival. Recently, New Brunswick eliminated their 3-month waiting period, and their health minister is quoted as saying "It's the right thing to do!" Our government should say the same and eliminate this waiting period!
2. It makes financial sense!
If people delay getting health care when they need it during the 3 months, these can lead to expensive complications for which the health care system just has to pay more in the future! Why pay for expensive hospital care when you can pay for inexpensive preventative care and prevent complications? Not to mention the loss of productivity from potential complications as well as making Ontario less attractive to immigrants which are the backbone of our economy. Covering new immigrants upon arrival costs less than 0.1% of our health care budget and they are on average healthier than their Canadian counterparts. It just makes financial sense!
3. It's healthier for everyone!
While immigrants are known to be healthier than their Canadian counterparts, health is unpredictable, and we should ensure that we are taking care of the physical and mental health of our newcomers. Also, from a public health perspective, it does not make sense to have any part of the population at large that can not access health care, especially in the case of vaccination and infectious diseases. Just one case of multi-drug resistant TB could be disastrous on a health and financial scale. It's important to protect everyone!
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