The leader of the Ontario NDP says the Sydenham Hospital in Wallaceburg is missing out on crucial funding from the province.
During a visit to Wallaceburg on Thursday, Andrea Horvath told citizens that the province has stripped the hospital of its "small and rural" designation and funding for vital services.
Horvath says the Wynne Liberals justified the move by saying that keeping the accounting clear between the Sydenham and Chatham hospitals was too complex to bother.
"In Sydenham's case, you pull their rural designation and that means there's not enough resources. Then you point the finger and say they're running in a deficit. Well, what do you expect when you're starving them for finances," says Horvath.
The province has about $20-million available each year for small and rural hospitals.
Horvath says this highlights just how out of touch Wynne and the Liberals are with people who live in rural communities.
Horvath says the Liberals don’t consider the hospital rural because it's eight minutes too close to Chatham to qualify under the government’s definition.
"Eight minutes equals the closing of beds and the loss of services and the erosion of the healthcare system in this community. It's absolutely unacceptable," Horvath says.
Horvath is calling on the Wynne Liberals to restore the "small and rural" hospital designation in Wallaceburg because it deserves better.
"There's an aging population in Wallaceburg. The drive to Chatham may only be 22 minutes but older people are not that comfortable on the highway, particularly in the evenings," says Horvath.