The provincial government is joining forces with the private sector to stop the spread of COVID-19 and keep the public safe.
Premier Doug Ford announced on Wednesday afternoon a new $50 million fund to support the development and manufacturing of essential medical equipment and supplies, such as gowns, coveralls, masks, face shields, testing equipment and ventilators. The premier said this new fund will support the development of proposals submitted by businesses and individuals through the Ontario Together web portal.
Ford said the Ontario Together Fund will help businesses provide innovative solutions or retool their operations to provide the most viable and critical goods and services quickly during this time of great need.
"Ontario has an army of innovators, entrepreneurs, and the hardest-working people in the world ready to roll up their sleeves, support our frontline healthcare workers, and beat this virus," said the premier. "This mass mobilization of government, business, communities and private citizens to slow the spread of COVID-19 and keep people safe and healthy represents one of the largest and most ambitious efforts undertaken by Ontario in generations."
Premier Ford added the province has been working closely with businesses across Ontario and the Automotive Parts Manufacturers' Association to ramp up production of ventilators to meet the need in Ontario and other parts of Canada. He said the province has recently placed an order with O-Two Medical Technologies who will produce 10,000 ventilators along with the support of Ontario's "world-class" manufacturing sector.
"Our government is taking extraordinary measures to support businesses and organizations that are responding to COVID-19," said Vic Fedeli, Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade. "It's inspiring to see the Ontario business community respond to the call to action. Through the Ontario Together web portal and the Ontario Together Fund, we are making sure that companies have the resources and support they need to supply emergency products and innovative solutions quickly and efficiently to help address this challenging time together."
This one-time funding of $50 million in 2020-21 during the COVID-19 outbreak is time-limited and will be available to companies and organizations across the province.
"The hard truth is, right now there is very little separating what we will face here in Ontario from the devastation we have seen in Italy and Spain," Ford said. "Thousands of lives are at stake."
He added these next two weeks will be absolutely critical because a surge is coming.
"It's up to each of us when that surge happens, and every week, every day, every hour we can push back the surge is another week, another day, another hour that we have to prepare," said the premier.
Ford told reporters that innovators like Spartan Bioscience in Ottawa are making portable tests kits that can be taken anywhere with test results within an hour.
"Today we're giving Ontario businesses some more ammunition to beat COVID-19 and backup our frontline healthcare workers," he said.