Ontario’s primary-care expansion needs proof of lasting access

Across Canada, patients depend on primary-care clinicians who know their health history and can see them when concerns arise. In 2024, 27 per cent of adults with a primary-care provider reported being able to see a health professional the same or next day for a non-urgent need, according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information.

Ontario’s October 26 announcement reports over 511,000 additional people attached to a family doctor or primary-care team since January 2025. The Ontario Ministry of Health’s figure is a net increase through May 31^st 2026, and it classifies the latest estimate as interim. Health Minister Sylvia Jones also reported clearing over 470,000 people from the Health Care Connect waitlist since January 2025. These are separate measures of progress.

“We’re ahead of schedule,” Jones said of the government’s goal to connect everyone by 2029. The four-year, $3.4-billion Primary Care Action Plan funds expanded teams and teaching clinics. Sharing patient care across a team can make appointments available through another clinician when a doctor’s schedule is full. Staffing decisions will determine how much access that model delivers.

Photographer: Cedric Fauntleroy

Ontario’s auditor general reported in its 2025 audit that Health Care Connect counted a person as connected upon referral, regardless of whether they enrolled. Current provincial instructions place the decision about ongoing care after the initial appointment. Jones should publish how many newly attached patients complete a first visit and retain an active relationship six and twelve months later. That follow-up would establish whether patients remain connected as their needs change.

At the start of January 2025, Health Care Connect registrants represented about 11 per cent of Ontarians (equal to approximately 1.79 million people) are known to be without a family physician, according to the auditor general. The voluntary registry captures people using one route into care. A province-wide assessment should also follow people who approach clinics themselves and residents seeking new practice after their doctor retires.

Ontario research using pre-pandemic surveys found that patients who experienced delayed access at their usual practice were more likely to use walk-in clinics. All participants already had a primary-care physician. For someone managing high blood pressure, continuity means a clinician can review readings over time and adjust treatment with knowledge of their history. Appointment availability determines whether patients can use that relationship.

For Caribbean diaspora communities, Ontario’s expansion creates an opportunity to press for services suited to residents’ lives. Statistics Canada’s April 2026 analysis of 2024 data found that 85 per cent of racialized adults in Ontario reported a regular health-care provider; while the figure was 91 per cent among non-racialized, non-Indigenous adults. This means roughly 750,000 racialized adults in Ontario are left without a regular doctor, navigating a strained healthcare system completely on their own. Those broad categories of “racialized” encompass different communities and migration histories, including diverse South Asian, Black, and Indigenous-adjacent newcomer populations, flattening distinct socio-economic realities into a single metric that obscures which specific ethnocultural communities are critically underserved.

Clinic hours, too, shape access for residents whose appointment means losing hourly wages, making funded evening care essential for fitting visits around employment. Furthermore, language remains a barrier for those who prefer to discuss complex medical needs in another language/dialect, highlighting another critical need for funded interpretation services. Reporting outcomes by race and immigration history would allow community organizations to accurately assess whose access improves during the expansion.

Photographer: Usman Yousaf

Toronto’s Access Alliance Multicultural Health and Community Services provides a local example of community-based delivery. The ministry reports that it attached over 2,500 patients by July 31^st, exceeding its target. Funding organizations with community relationships can support outreach beyond the registry, provided staffing and appointment capacity grow with enrolment.

Jones introduced Bill 13, the Primary Care Act, which became law in June 2025. Its objectives include timely services and carefree from discrimination. The Act requires annual public reporting, including the percentage of insured residents with an ongoing primary-care relationship. The Ministry of Health should use that reporting to show appointment waits across communities and continued access after referral.

Residents seeking a provider can register through Health Care Connect online or by calling 811, with a valid Ontario health card. Community organizations should support registration and collect patients’ experiences after referral. Moving forward, Ontario’s next progress report should account for the care newly attached patients receive, including those who find a practice outside the registry.