FACT: The high growth regions of Durham, Halton, Peel, and York and Dufferin County and communities of Kitchener, Waterloo, Guelph, Cambridge, West Ottawa, Fergus and Wellington are among the fastest growing regions in Ontario. Making up over a quarter of Ontario’s population, these regions account for half the annual population growth in the province.

FACT: The hospitals in high growth regions of  Durham, Halton, Peel, and York  and Dufferin County and communities of Kitchener, Waterloo, Guelph, Cambridge, West Ottawa, Fergus and Wellington are among the most efficient in Ontario and are leaders in the provision of high quality hospital care.

FACT: The high growth regions of Durham, Halton, Peel, and York and Dufferin County and communities of Kitchener, Waterloo, Guelph, Cambridge, West Ottawa, Fergus and Wellington contain almost half the targeted communities identified in the provincial government’s Plan for Growth in Ontario.

FACT: Increasing hospital services in the high growth regions of Durham, Halton, Peel, and York and Dufferin County and communities of Kitchener, Waterloo, Guelph, Cambridge, West Ottawa, Fergus and Wellington brings care close to home for high growth residents and saves the Ontario government tens of millions of dollars each year because high growth hospitals provide quality care at lower costs.

FACT: The residents of high growth regions of Durham, Halton, Peel, and York and Dufferin County and communities of Kitchener, Waterloo, Guelph, Cambridge, West Ottawa, Fergus and Wellington are now paying more than $570 million each year to the provincial government as a result of the new health care premium.

SAD FACT: A recent Ontario government sponsored report on access to health care services shows that the residents of the high growth regions of Durham, Halton, Peel, and York and Dufferin County and communities of Kitchener, Waterloo, Guelph, Cambridge, West Ottawa, Fergus and Wellington have, for three quarters of the services examined, rates of access to hospital services that are lower than the provincial average…even lower than rates in Northern Ontario.

SAD FACT: Since 2003, the Durham, Halton, Peel, and York and Dufferin County and communities of Kitchener, Waterloo, Guelph, Cambridge, West Ottawa, Fergus and Wellington residents’ per capita hospital funding gap has grown from $156 per person to $187 per person. This means that the annual funding gap has grown from $584 million in 2003 to over $762 million in 2005.

SAD FACT: The residents of the 905 regions of Durham, Halton, Peel, and York and Dufferin County and communities of Kitchener, Waterloo, Guelph, Cambridge, West Ottawa, Fergus and Wellington are not getting a fair share of hospital and health care resources. Unless the Ontario government reinstates growth funding for hospitals serving high growth regions, the situation will only get worse.