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Ontario 2025 provincial election

Arthritis affects one in five voters in Ontario. Two-thirds are under the age of 65. It is a leading cause of work disability in Ontario and a significant economic burden related to direct health care costs and indirect costs to the economy related to lost employment, sick leave, and absenteeism.

Health care is one of the most important issues for Ontario voters leading up to the February 27, 2025 provincial election. The way people living with arthritis access and receive health care varies significantly across the province, particularly in rural and remote communities. Another barrier is timely access to advanced therapies. Currently, Ontario Drug Benefit reimbursement criteria require patients to first fail on older, less effective treatments, causing unnecessary delays in accessing the most appropriate therapies for the right patient at the right time. These barriers particularly affect people living with inflammatory arthritis – like rheumatoid arthritis, axial spondyloarthritis, psoriatic arthritis or lupus – who depend on getting a timely and accurate diagnosis, fast access to rheumatologists, and appropriate public reimbursement for essential medications.

The time to address arthritis prevention, treatment, and care is now after years of being at the back of the line of health care planning and delivery in Ontario. Arthritis Consumer Experts (ACE) is asking the political parties and candidates running in the Ontario election what they will do, if elected, to improve the timely access to arthritis treatment and care and ensure equitable access for all Ontario residents.

Any responses received by ACE will be archived and posted as they arrive.

ACE survey

ACE letter sent to each candidate included: Party and candidate responses
This section will be updated as we receive responses from political parties and individual candidates.

Questions voiced by Ontario people with arthritis
  • Will your government commit to continued funding of the Advanced Clinical Practitioner in Arthritis Care (ACPAC) Project to improve models of arthritis care in Northern Ontario, including Phase 4 expansion?
  • Will your government commit to modernizing the Ontario Drug Benefit Program by making special access criteria less demanding and restrictive to improve timely patient access to advanced biologic and tsDMARDs medications?
  • Will your government introduce culturally appropriate, patient-centered policies to help Indigenous Peoples navigate the healthcare system and receive coordinated care within their community to manage their arthritis?
  • Will your government commit to reinvesting biosimilars savings to increase accessibility to new medicines and expand coverage for existing medicines for people living with inflammatory arthritis?
  • Will your government work with the arthritis community to reduce avoidable emergency department use by people living with arthritis?
  • What will your government do to ensure the continuation, improvement, and expansion of virtual care for Ontario residents – both patients and health care professionals – and ensure access is equitable to all?
Any questions received by ACE will be posted anonymously.

Ways to vote
To make voting easier for all voters, Elections Ontario has provided several options, including voting on election day, at your local election office, at an advance voting location, by mail, or by home visit.