Ontario NDP official health care critic France Gélinas said the province needs a more formal and organized approach to treating patients with Long COVID, the persistent health condition that affects thousands of former COVID-19 patients.
Gélinas, who is also the MPP for Nickel Belt, raised the issue in the Ontario legislature this past week, saying Ontario "does not have a coordinated approach to care for patients with a post COVID-19 condition." Gélinas said she was quoting a document from the Ministry of Health.
Gélinas asked Health Minister Sylvia Jones how aside from providing OHIP bill codes, what can the minister tell the 750,000 Ontarians living with Long COVID patients about where they can access the care they urgently need.
Jones responded that Gélinas was being dismissive and disrespectful of the importance of the billing codes and that the health ministry was working with the Ontario Medical Association to make sure that physicians are treating and assisting individuals with Long COVID
"It is an important piece to make sure that individuals with Long COVID are not left abandoned by our health care system—which is not going to happen under this government." said Jones.
Gélinas said that was not in line with a ministry of health briefing, which she quoted:
“While some providers are responding to the immediate demand for post-COVID care, these offerings are insufficient, fragmented and unsustainable without dedicated funding."
This model is not sustainable and could result in little to no support for Ontarians with post-COVID needs, Gélinas added in her reply to the minister.
Gélinas further warned that the clinics are at risk of being closed because there is not enough funding. A provincially coordinated approach would be most effective, said Gélinas, further quoting the ministry briefing.
Jones had the last word and said the government "has always been there" for the people" of Ontario and that excellent work is underway in Ontario hospitals and universities to further study Long COVID,
"As we develop and see how those outcomes continue, we will be there, as we have been through the entire pandemic, to make sure that they have the resources to continue to serve these important long COVID patients," said Jones.
