Ontario to introduce legislation on long-term care standards today

TORONTO — The Ontario government says it will introduce legislation today aimed at reforming standards in the province's long-term care sector.

Full details of the proposed law will be laid out this afternoon.

Long-Term Care Minister Rod Phillips has said the legislation will aim to better protect residents in the sector that was hit hard with COVID-19 outbreaks and deaths during the pandemic.

The province says the legislation will cover new accountability and enforcement measures and residents' rights.

Phillips has said the government's pledge to provide an average of four hours of daily direct care for each resident by 2025 will be included in the legislation.

The law would also give long-term care inspectors the power to lay charges on the spot.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 28, 2021.