ORILLIA — Policing priorities, traffic-calming and the possibility of a city-operated medical clinic are among items set for discussion at Monday’s council meeting in Orillia, which is scheduled for 2 p.m. in the council chamber.
Council will consider putting together a working group that could bring several family physicians to Orillia under a city-operated medical clinic.
A similar plan has rolled out in Colwood, B.C., where the municipality hired family physicians, pays their salaries and benefits, and is then reimbursed by the province — a tactic Mayor Don McIsaac said could play out in Orillia through OHIP.
“The doctor will be an employee of the city. They will have whatever benefits city employees have, and then they will bill OHIP directly, and the city will kind of act as a bank to broker that,” McIsaac told Village Media.
He said new doctors can be impeded by student debt when looking to set up practices, and the idea is to provide the administrative support required to ensure “the doctors are free to practise and do what they do best.”
“We’ve been in contact with ... (Health) Minister (Sylvia) Jones, and she’s indicated this can be done with the doctors billing directly to OHIP, and she’s providing contacts within her ministry to help us get this off the ground,” McIsaac said.
If successful, the mayor estimates the initiative could connect thousands of Orillians with a family physician.
The idea was brought forward by councillors Ralph Cipolla, Jeff Czetwerzuk, Luke Leatherdale and Whitney Smith, who have asked that council approve putting together a working group to look into the initiative. They have also requested $500,000 in funding to get started.
If approved, the working group will consult with healthcare organizations on the idea, and will be directed to report back by March 24 on its feasibility.
Ontario Provincial Police priorities
Following a period left open for public input, city council will decide on the three policing priorities it would like to see Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) work on in Orillia.
The decision follows a request from the Couchiching OPP Detachment Board, which oversees policing in the area.
The new board, which replaced the former Orillia Police Services Board, is made up of representatives from Orillia, Oro-Medonte, Ramara and Severn, each of which have been asked to weigh in on policing priorities in their communities ahead of the board’s 2025 local action plan.
Some of the requests sent in by the public include street-level drug and weapon enforcement, increased foot patrols downtown, and focusing on ending “illegal encampments.”
