Andrew Longhurst
Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
Senior researcher at the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. Author of "Not adding up: Surgical and diagnostic privatization in Ontario" (Sept 28, 2026), which analyzed FOI and public data on Ontario's for-profit surgical and imaging clinics.
Connected Scandals
Ford directed nearly $300 million in public funds to 61 new private (majority for-profit) clinics while Ontario's public hospitals face historic underfunding — triggering one of the largest healthcare protests in Ontario history, with thousands marching at Queen's Park on May 28, 2026.
Authored the CCPA study released Sept 28, 2026, which found wait times rose for 8 of 12 priority procedures between 2017 and 2025 as for-profit clinic funding grew, and that FOI records show $659 million paid to private clinics in 2024-25 versus $84.7 million in the Public Accounts. "It's deeply alarming that so much money has been spent on for-profit surgeries and, yet, we don't have the results to show what Ontarians are getting for those dollars" (CBC).