Province funds 14 new Erie Shores Healthcare hospital beds

The Ontario government is investing $7.2 million to fund 14 new hospital beds at Erie Shores Healthcare.
Chatham-Kent-Leamington MPP Trevor Jones and Essex MPP Anthony Leardi announced $6.1 million in funding for 12 additional acute care beds and $1.1 million for two additional ICU beds. This brings the total bed capacity at Erie Shores to 72.
“The Ontario government is building a stronger public health system, with care closer to home and more convenient for Ontarians,” Jones said in a news release. “This builds on historic investments our government has made in this essential community hospital that boasts such remarkable staff who do great work. They deserve it.”
Leardi said the investments will help the hospital to address rising community needs as the region grows.
“Ensuring our residents have the care they need, when and where they need it, is a core promise of our government,” he said. “The more than $7.2 million investment demonstrates this commitment.”
The province says its $850 million investment in 2023-24 represents a four per cent increase in hospital operating funding from 2022-2023.
“I want to thank the government, especially MPPs Jones and Leardi, for their ongoing commitment to the future of our hospital,” said hospital CEO Kristin Kennedy. “These additional beds provide much-needed capacity as our region’s population and economy continue to grow.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories

'Shadows of children': For the youngest hostages, life moves forward in whispers
After seven weeks held hostage in the tunnels of Gaza, they are finally free to laugh and chat and play. But some of the children who have come back from captivity are still reluctant to raise their voices above a whisper.
Extremely rare white alligator is born at a Florida reptile park
An extremely rare white leucistic alligator has been born at a Florida reptile park. The 19.2-inch (49 cm) female slithered out of its shell and into the history books as one of a few known leucistic alligators, Gatorland Orlando said Thursday.
Minnesota grocery store clerk dies after customer impales him with a golf club, police say
A Minneapolis store clerk died after a customer beat him and impaled him with a golf club, police said. The 66-year-old clerk was attacked Friday at the Oak Grove Grocery, a small neighborhood store in a residential area near downtown Minneapolis. A 44-year-old suspect is jailed on suspicion of murder.
A Soviet-era statue of a Red Army commander taken down in Kyiv
City workers in Kyiv on Saturday dismantled an equestrian statue of a Red Army commander, the latest Soviet monument to be removed in the Ukrainian capital since Russia launched its full-scale invasion last year.
Ibrahim Ali found guilty of killing 13-year-old girl in B.C.
A jury has found Ibrahim Ali guilty of killing a 13-year-old girl whose body was found in a Burnaby, B.C., park in 2017.
Protests at UN climate talks, from ceasefire calls to detainees, see 'shocking level of censorship'
Activists designated Saturday a day of protest at the COP28 summit in Dubai. But the rules of the game in the tightly controlled United Arab Emirates meant sharp restrictions on what demonstrators could say, where they could walk and what their signs could portray.
Bill 15: Quebec health reform passes after gov't invokes closure
After sitting through the night, early Saturday morning, members of the Quebec legislature finally passed Bill 15 to reform the health-care network, voting 75 to 27.
Marathon Conservative carbon tax filibuster ends after nearly 30 consecutive hours of House votes
The Conservative-prompted filibuster in the House of Commons ended Friday night, after MPs spent nearly 30 hours voting non-stop on the government's spending plans.
New U.S. aid for Ukraine by year-end seems increasingly out of reach as GOP ties it to border security
A deal to provide further U.S. assistance to Ukraine by year-end appears to be increasingly out of reach for President Joe Biden. The impasse is deepening in Congress despite dire warnings from the White House about the consequences of inaction as Republicans insist on pairing the aid with changes to America's immigration and border policies.