Media Advisory - Federal government's response to Ebola crisis is negligent, inhumane and insufficient

TORONTO, Oct. 20, 2014 /CNW/ - If Ebola comes to Canada, the federal government will share significant responsibility, says Michael Hurley, president of the Ontario Council of Hospital Unions/CUPE (OCHU). "The Harper government's laissez-faire attitude towards Ebola is evidenced by its refusal to provide mobile hospitals to stricken African nations, its refusal of formal requests for personal protective equipment which were then sold off and its failure to mobilize our nation's healthcare resources fully behind the fight against Ebola in Africa".

"We cannot just wait for Ebola cases to appear in Canada. This virus must be fought and contained at its source, in West Africa. The federal government's $65,000,000 contribution is woefully inadequate and shames us. Hospitals in West Africa are overwhelmed and many patients are dying in squalid conditions. It's time for the federal government to marshal Canada's health human resources, as Cuba has done and to fund and staff up mobile hospitals in the stricken nations."

Without a dramatic increase in medical aid to West Africa, cases of Ebola could reach 1.4 million by January. "The Harper government's theory that Ebola's coming to Canada is inevitable is true only if it remains committed to doing almost nothing to assist West Africa. Proactive measures can stem this outbreak," Hurley said.

SOURCE: Ontario Council of Hospital Unions (CUPE)

Michael Hurley, President, Ontario Council of Hospital Unions/CUPE (OCHU), 416-884-0770