The number of Ontarians without a family doctor has surpassed 2.5 million, with experts warning the situation will worsen unless the province takes immediate action.
As Ontario politicians scramble to come up with plans to address Ontario’s doctor shortage , the situation is likely to “get worse before it gets better,” the president of the Ontario Medical Association says. The number of Ontarians without a family doctor in 2024 eclipsed 2.5 million, according to the Ontario College of Family Physicians. The list has grown by 400,000 since 2020 and most experts agree that the trend is likely to continue in the New Year.
In fact, the OMA has warned that by 2026 there could be 4.4 million Ontarians without a family doctor, partly due to the fact that about 40 per cent of family doctors in the province today are considering retirement in the next few years. “I meet people almost every day who can’t find a family doctor,” OMA President Dr. Dominik Nowak told CP24.com this month. “Nearly one in four people in this province are living through it right now and unless the province acts now and gets things going now, it’s going to get worse before it gets better.”The team’s “mandate,” the province said, is to connect “every person in Ontario to primary care within the next five years.”“What the government now needs to do is implement what Dr. Philpott is going to recommend,” he said. “It can’t just be a smart political move and about a report in a few years, it has to be action on the ground that people feel, that doctors feel within 90 days.” He also applauded the provincial government for expanding the “Learn and Stay” program that covers tuition and other educational costs to include students who commit to becoming family doctors in Ontario. The anticipated price tag for the program, which begins in 2026, is $88 million and will include 1,360 eligible undergraduate students. The province estimates that this program will likely connect 1.36 million more Ontarians to primary care.But Nowak said Ontarians can’t wait years to see meaningful change as there is already a “big strain” on the province’s health system
HEALTHCARE DOCTOR SHORTAGE ONTARIO PRIMARY CARE HEALTH SYSTEM
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