Ontario hospitals are facing mounting financial and operational pressures as demand for care increases, according to a new report from the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), which is calling for $5 billion in additional provincial funding over three years. CUPE’s Ontario Council of Hospital Unions released its report Thursday in Windsor, pointing to what it describes as chronic underfunding, staffing shortages, rising costs, and increasing demand for hospital services. The union says the pressures are particularly apparent in Windsor and Chatham-Kent. Doug Allan, a senior researcher with CUPE National, said hospital expenses across Ontario increased by about 6.5 per cent over the seven-year period ending in 2024. He said spending on drugs has increased by about 12 per cent annually, while contracted services have risen by about nine per cent a year. At the same time, Allan said hospitals are dealing with increased demand from a growing and aging population, as well as younger people experiencing chronic illnesses earlier in life. CUPE says total inpatient days in Ontario have increased by 15 per cent, while the average length of stay has increased from 6.5 days to 7.5 days. Allan said the pressures are reflected in hospital finances and capacity in Windsor and Chatham-Kent. According to figures provided by CUPE, Windsor Regional Hospital and Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare had combined working capital of approximately negative $42.2 million. CUPE puts Chatham-Kent Health Alliance’s working capital at negative $18 million. The union also cites reported deficits of approximately $22 million for Windsor Regional Hospital and $6 million for CKHA. Allan said the figures demonstrate the financial pressures facing hospitals. “Our hospitals are in crisis,” said Michael Hurley, president of CUPE’s Ontario Council of Hospital Unions. “They are really struggling now. They’ve had a collapse of their working capital.” The union also says hospitals are operating at high occupancy rates. CUPE puts bed occupancy at approximately 91 per cent at Windsor’s two hospitals and 96 per cent at CKHA’s Chatham and Wallaceburg sites. Allan said the occupancy figures reflect patients being treated outside staffed inpatient beds, including in hospital hallways. CUPE says nearly 2,000 patients are being treated in hallways across Ontario on any given day based on the most recent provincial data it reviewed. Hurley said the pressures are also affecting hospital workers and the level of care they can provide. “There’s this huge gap between what they’re able to do because of time pressure and what the patient needs,” Hurley said. “There just aren’t enough staff. There just aren’t.” CUPE estimates Ontario needs approximately 55,000 additional full-time equivalent hospital workers to match staffing levels elsewhere in Canada. The union says Windsor would require about 1,266 additional staff, while Chatham-Kent would require about 332. CUPE is calling for $5 billion in additional provincial hospital funding over three years. It estimates Windsor Regional Hospital and Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare would require an additional $128 million, while CKHA would require another $32 million. Both hospitals acknowledged they are facing financial and operational pressures, while stopping short of endorsing CUPE’s figures. “Like hospitals across Ontario, we continue to navigate through certain pressures while remaining committed to providing safe, high-quality patient care,” Windsor Regional Hospital said in a statement. “We are working closely with Ontario Health and the Ministry of Health to manage these challenges.” CKHA said it had not reviewed CUPE’s report and could not comment on its specific figures. “Chatham-Kent Health Alliance, like hospitals across Ontario, continues to experience financial and operational pressures driven by increasing patient demand, complex care, capacity challenges and rising costs,” the hospital said in a statement. CKHA said its publicly reported financial statements and performance indicators reflect the ongoing challenges facing the organization. The hospital said additional investments in hospital funding and health human resources remain important to ensure hospitals can meet growing demand and provide timely access to care. Erie Shores HealthCare in Leamington declined to comment on the report. CUPE provided CTV News Windsor with separate figures for ESHC, saying the hospital had approximately $400,000 in working capital, a $2.6-million deficit and a bed occupancy rate of 91 per cent in 2025-26. The union estimates ESHC would require an additional $10.8 million in funding and 127 additional full-time staff to reach funding and staffing levels comparable with other provinces. Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare did not respond to a request for comment by this article’s publication time. The Ontario government strongly disputes CUPE’s assessment of the province’s hospital system. In a statement provided to CTV News Windsor, a spokesperson for Health Minister Sylvia Jones called CUPE’s claims “entirely misguided.” The province says it is investing a record $101 billion in health care this year, including a four per cent increase in hospital funding for the third consecutive year. The government says its total investment in hospitals has increased by more than 50 per cent since 2018, while funding for Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare, Windsor Regional Hospital and CKHA has increased by 45 per cent. The province also points to more than $60 billion in hospital development projects that it says will add 3,000 new beds across Ontario. It says it has added 20,000 doctors and 100,000 nurses since 2018 and says publicly funded same-day hip and knee surgeries have increased significantly. The government also disputes claims about surgical wait times, saying Canadian Institute for Health Information data shows the average wait time for cataract surgery in Ontario has improved by more than 55 per cent. The province says expanded cataract surgeries at community surgical and diagnostic centres have increased volumes by more than 172 per cent. Allan said new hospital construction alone will not address the pressures facing the system without sufficient operational funding and staffing. “The government loves to talk about new hospitals,” Allan said. “We need to invest our money where it’s needed, both in developing and replacing the hospitals as they age out and in delivering the care that we need to the public.” CUPE says the pressures facing Ontario hospitals will continue as the baby boomer generation ages and is calling on the province to increase staffing, bed capacity and operational funding.
