way forward," when her actions

indicate otherwise. Mattfiews has been fully aware for years that the Ontario Associa-

tion of Community Care Access Centres instituted a media clause

that is now in access centre contracts throughout the province. And she knows t}Iis clause has effectively gagged service provider agencies and contracteal front-

- f EB 2J>,?Dl+ Listen to all perspectives

regarding home care
Dear ealitor:
Re:

line health care professionals from speaking out. Yet she has alone nothing about it. Why? I'd suggest it isbecause Mattlews realizes tfris clause has enableil the Ontario Association
of Community Care Access Centres, community care access cenEes, the Ministry of HeaItI, and

her to spin their self-serving mes-

Ontario is expanding

home care

I take issue

Feb. 13 with the commen-

tary by Deb Matthews, Ontario's Minister ofHealth and Long-Term

Care.

unopposed. This unilateral access to the media is simply wrong. In the spAit offair anil balanceil coverage, I am therefore requesting that the Mhistry of Health, t]Ie Ontar.io Association of Communisages

ty Care Access Centres, and community care access centres refrain

Matthews insists Ontarians are getting better value for theA tax dollars in home care. She touts the

reduction of care co-orilination as a percentage oftotal community

care access centre spending as

evialence.
So, Matthews linally seems to admitting tlat care co-ordination, although necessary is not

from eq)ressing their points of view in the media until such time as this unconstitutional media clause is removedfrom these access centres' contracts. Either al1 stakeholders' perspectives regarding home care
should be heard, or none ofthem.
Sue

be

Willidms
iona I t h er d.pist

Occ u p at

direct care, and this function should be kept to what is minimally essential in oriler to ensure maximum dollars reach front-line
service providers. But ifso, how can she brag about value to taxpayers when currently for every community caxe access centre douar spent on

Cuelph

dtect

care, a whopping 50 cents stil1 goes to the co-ordination ofit?

And wh5r then, does Matthews allow tfre Ontario Association of Community Care Access Centres
to alisseminate the knowingly false statistic that more tfran 91.3 cents ofevery commuiity care access centre 4ollar is spent on direct care? What bothers me tire most is

Matthows' assertion that she is

"oDen to new ways

ofdoing

things" and that she encourages "constructive proposals from

health-care partners on the best