$8,400 hospital fine will go unpaid, says Ontario family who opposes controversial LTC law

Tecumseh, Ont., resident Michele Campeau says the $8,400 bill her mom has received related to the province's controversial long-term care law is a "scare tactic" that she's not falling for.

She also plans to use it in her fight to put a stop to the legislation.

"This is not just about my mother anymore ... a lot of people get scared and bullied into paying this,"said Campeau, whose mom has been atHtel-DieuGrace Healthcare in Windsor since the beginning of the year.

"I think it's time for us to stand up and protect our elderly."

CBC News spoke with Campeaulast month, when she said she had been told there would be a $400-a-day charge related to Bill 7,after she refused to move her mom into a care home that they didn't want.

Bill 7, the More Beds, Better Care Act, came into effect in September 2022. Itallowshospitalsto charge patients who refuse to move into a long-term care bed chosen on their behalf.

Htel-Dieu Grace Healthcare says the legislation is necessary to free up beds needed for patients with urgent health issues.But an advocate says the stress and immense financial burden Campeau and her mom are experiencing areexactly why this legislation needs to be revoked.

Bill 'gives me fuel to fight this,' says patient's daughter

Campeau's mother, Ruth Poupard, is83 and hasdementia. Shewent to Windsor Regional Hospital on Dec. 27after falling and breaking her hip. She was soon moved to Htel-Dieu Grace Healthcare.

Weeks later, she said she was eligible for long-term care and the hospital found a home with an available bed.

But Campeau told CBC News last month that after viewing the facility, she wouldn't even put her dog in there. She refusedthe bed, which then meant the $400-a-day charge kicked in.

WATCH |Ontario resident says the fine will go unpaid:

Ontario resident, who disagrees with the policy, says the fine will go unpaid

5 months ago

Duration 0:36

Michele Campeau says the $8,400 bill that her mom received, along with any future ones, will not be paid. Campeau's mom is still in hospital and waiting for a bed in one of the long-term care homes that she wants.

On April 22, Poupard was billed $8,400 for her March 11 to 31 hospital stay.

She's still in the hospital and hasn't beenoffered a bed at one of the five long-term-care homes the family wants, saidCampeau.

The family is expecting to receive another bill for April's stay, which will be much higher, in a few weeks.

With a physical bill in hand, Campeau saidshe now feels more "empowered" to fight the issue.

"It's just bullying, it's elder abuse, there's no justification," she said.

"I'm not upset about it, because it gives me fuel to fight this."

Hospital CEO says fine is 'last resort' to free up beds

Htel-DieuGrace Healthcare CEO Bill Marracould not speak onthe family's case for privacy reasons. He confirmed the hospital has only charged one person under Bill 7 so far.

"We have very personal and conscientious conversations with families.If they have legitimate reasons for delay we work with them as well. It's ...very much a last resort option that we don't want to invoke, we've exhausted every alternative and then that leaves us no choice to do what we are required to do by law," he said.

WATCH |Hospital CEO explains processto move patients out of hospital::

Hospital CEO explains when Bill 7 policy is used

5 months ago

Duration 2:03

Bill Marra, CEO of Htel-Dieu Grace Healthcare, breaks down what the hospital does when it has a patient who is ready to move out of its care and into a long-term care facility.

Marra added that Bill 7 is important legislation andnecessary to free up essentialresources.

As of Tuesday afternoon, Marra said, there were at least two dozen people in Windsor emergency rooms waiting for a bed.

He added that in recent days, Windsor Regional Hospital had 11 patients move into long-term-care homes that they didn't want. Marra says that based on the average time these patients would have spent in hospital, by moving out, they freed up space for 250 patients.

"Two hundred and fiftypeople are not waiting in the [emergency room], they're not waiting to be admitted, they're not waiting for services that are required for their medical condition," he said.

"[The bill] is not meant to be punitive, it's not meant to make anyone's life difficult, it's meant to ensure that a hospital bed is used for a patient that requires a hospital bed."

He said although this may seem like a "blunt instrument," it's essential to manage the high demand for hospital services.

In response to critics who say Bill 7 puts the responsibility of a systemic problem in the health-care system on vulnerable patients, Marra saidhe doesn't agree with that, adding "we have a medical system that works when it's used properly."

As for consequences if afine goes unpaid, Marra saidthey haven't considered it at this time, but plan to do their best to work with families and are open to a payment plan that accommodates a person's financial situation.

A spokesperson for Health Minister Sylvia Jones's officesaid in an email Tuesday thatdue to patient confidentiality, theycan't share more details on patients who have been charged fees by hospitals. Last month, the government confirmed seven people had been billed in the province in relation to Bill 7.

'This bill is not a solution'

Laura Tamblyn Watts, CEO and president of elderly advocacy organization CanAge, said"this bill is not a solution."

"This is the definition of systemic abuse and exactly what frail people do not need," she said, adding that clearly Campeau is not complying with the policy out of fear that placing her in a home they don't like would "further injure their loved one."

She saidno one should be placed in this sort of difficult situation, especially not vulnerable people who don't have many options for care as both home care services and long-term care facilities have long wait lists.

Tamblyn Watts saidthe government needs to invest more into home-care servicesso people can afford to age where they want.

Campeau saidshe is working with the Toronto-based organizationAdvocacy Centre for the Elderly.

The centre and the Ontario Health Coalitionhave filed alawsuit against the government, alleging the bill violates theCharter of Rights and Freedoms.