A new report says hospital wait-times are rising sharply across Ontario as funding fails to keep pace with growing costs in the health system.
The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives says most of Ontario’s 136 hospitals have been running operating deficits since 2022, creating mounting pressure on care delivery and staffing.
Senior researcher Andrew Longhurst said hospital costs are rising by about six per cent annually, but provincial funding increases have not matched that growth, contributing to longer waits and reduced capacity.
The report found emergency department performance is deteriorating provincewide, with admission wait-times rising 52 per cent over five years and emergency department assessment delays up 67 per cent. At Kingston Health Sciences Centre, 90 per cent of patients waited 37 hours for admission in 2024–25, up from 22.7 hours in 2020–21.
The analysis also highlights a 152 per cent increase in time to initial physician assessment at Kingston Health Sciences Centre over five years.
The report says Ontario ranks low in per-capita hospital spending, while health-care work represents about one in five jobs in the province.
Ontario Council of Hospital Unions president Michael Hurley says hospitals need increased staffing and sustained funding to reverse growing wait-times and staffing shortages.
Story by Alyssa Brush
