Chatham family felt blindsided by Bill 7 charge

(Source: Getty Images)

The Ontario government has confirmed the More Beds, Better Care act has seen seven people in the province charged hundreds of dollars since it became law in September 2022.

The act, known as Bill 7, sees patients charged $400 for each day they opt to spend in hospital if it has been deemed there’s a bed for them in a long-term care home.

For Tamara Moir, the Bill 7 bill handed to her family last March came as quite a surprise.

"It's a stressful enough situation as it is without having that compiled on top,” she said.

It was during that period in early 2023 that it became apparent her father-in-law would need to be placed in long-term care.

There was an opening available immediately, but it wasn’t in the family’s first choice facility.

“We did our diligence and went and toured the long-term care but we decided as a family that that wasn't what would be best for him,” Moir said.

Thirteen days passed from when the Moirs declined that bed to the day they were able to move their loved one into the home they hoped — Then came the $5,200 bill.

“We were kind of shocked,” Moir said. “It was just brought to our attention that could be possible when we declined, but that's the only time that was ever mentioned.”

This was six months after Bill 7 became law and Moir said she’d not heard of anyone actually being charged.

In fact, as recently as this March 2024, Long-Term Care Minister Stan Cho still said the Ontario Government was not aware of anyone being fined.

“Their system is flawed because the right parties weren't letting the other parties know,” Moir said.

A spokesperson for Health Minister Sylvia Jones told CTV News Wednesday several people had been charged.

“I can confirm that out of the nearly 20,000 people designated as ALC [alternative level of care patients] by a clinician, meaning they no longer require care in the hospital, who have moved to long term care homes, seven have been charged under Bill 7 by the hospital,” wrote spokesperson Hannah Jensen.

Moir said she has to doubt that number, with the ministry apparently unaware of any instances for more than a year.

“I think it's way too low,” she said.

She said she chose to speak out in hopes of reaching other families.

“Maybe there's some other people out there that will come forward and speak up,” she said. “I like transparency and accountability with everybody.”