Bonnie Crombie, Ontario Liberal Leader, Prioritizes Health Care in Campaign Kickoff

January 29, 2025 TruthUSA

Ontario Liberal Leader Bonnie Crombie is focusing on health care in her election campaign, highlighting the lack of access to care for many Ontarians.

Starting her campaign in Barrie, Ont., Crombie pledged to address the province’s family physician shortage and criticized Premier Doug Ford for calling an early election.

She argued that the $175 million spent on the unnecessary election could be better used to tackle the shortage of family doctors in Ontario.

Crombie aims to ensure that every resident of Ontario has access to a family doctor within four years, emphasizing that over 2.5 million people currently lack this access.

Her statements followed the Progressive Conservative government’s recent commitment to connect an additional two million people to publicly funded family doctors or primary care teams within four years.

Crombie criticized this funding as insufficient, promising to hire 3,100 family medicine specialists to address the shortage and also tackle overcrowding in the province’s hospitals known as “hallway health care.”

Unlike Ford and NDP Leader Marit Stiles, Crombie launched her campaign without a crowd of supporters, appearing with the Liberal candidate Rose Zacharias, who is a former president of the Ontario Medical Association.

Both Crombie and Zacharias wore hats with the slogan “Real Leaders Fix Healthcare” displayed on the front.

In addition to addressing the health care issues, Crombie promised to establish a ministry to tackle homelessness and addiction if elected as premier, without providing specific details on the strategy.

Reducing the HST on home heating and hydro, along with tax cuts for small businesses and the middle class, are also part of Crombie’s agenda. She assured that those earning less than $75,000 annually will see a 22 percent reduction in taxes.

While Ford focuses on the 25 percent tariffs threatened by U.S. President Trump, Crombie criticized him for not prioritizing issues like health care.

The Liberal party, under Crombie’s leadership, aims to regain official party status at Queen’s Park. Currently holding nine seats in the 124-seat legislature, Crombie, the former mayor of Mississauga, will run in the riding of Mississauga East-Cooksville in the upcoming election on Feb. 27.

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