Grey County has asked the province to continue a program to provide funding for healthcare services for those who do not have coverage through OHIP.
At its meeting on April 27, county council unanimously passed a resolution calling on the province to continue the uninsured persons program.
Heather Prescott, a nurse practitioner and clinical lead with Supportive Outreach Services (SOS) spoke to county council about the program and its critical importance for marginalized members of the community.
The province introduced the program during the COVID-19 pandemic to ensure healthcare providers could treat those without insurance.
“Very quietly, as of April 1, that program has ended. It’s unclear what will happen,” said Prescott. “The most significant impact to this will be that uninsured individuals will be at risk of not receiving necessary medical care.”
SOS team is a support program through a partnership of local agencies and communities that provides assistance to vulnerable members of the community, including those experiencing homelessness, addictions and mental health issues. Local health care providers, county social services, paramedic and housing departments, local municipalities and multiple non-government groups are all involved.
“We offer hope and dignity and provide a voice to the voiceless,” said Prescott.
She said through the program, SOS is able to offer individuals assistance with obtaining identification necessary to access a host of social and health care services.
Prescott said getting the proper ID can be “an arduous process” for many people.
Melissa McCulloch, the county’s manager of social assistance, said the program provided critical support last year in Hanover after a rooming house fire that impacted more than 50 people living in the building.
“They were covered because this program was going,” said McCulloch. “If something like that happened again it would be really devastating to those folks.”
The Ontario Medical Association recently asked the province to continue the program. In the resolution, the county council asked for the province to continue the program for six months and to hold consultations with stakeholder groups to develop new policies to ensure uninsured members of the community continue to receive medical support and services.
The full resolution can be found on the agenda for the meeting here.
