Thank you to the member opposite for sharing.

This fall economic statement is really to serve those who are vulnerable—if you go through what we have presented. I am from the Ministry for Seniors and Accessibility. Look at what we are doing for those with a disability. We are raising the earnings exemption from $200 to $1,000 per month. And for the seniors who have the GAINS program, we are increasing that.

Do you think we should have direct relief measures for seniors in Ontario?

The legislation proposes doubling the Guaranteed Annual Income System payment for all recipients for 12 months. Will the member opposite support this direct relief measure for seniors in Ontario?

My question is for the Minister of Long-Term Care.

As Ontarians grow older, their health care needs often become more complex. Data shows that Ontario has an aging population. In 2011, just over 14% of our population was age 65-plus, but over the last decade, the number has grown significantly and will only increase further.

But our seniors are not statistics. They are individuals who deserve quality care. Those with unique care needs like dementia greatly benefit from specialized care while avoiding unnecessary hospitalization.

Speaker, what is our government doing to ensure our seniors with complex needs receive the quality care they deserve?

Sadly, the reality is that while our senior population grew over the last decade, the health care system did not.

From 2009 to 2018, the Liberal government failed to plan for seniors’ services and programs needed. The Liberals’ lack of attention on health care services for our seniors created a rise in hallway health care and a long-term care wait-list that ballooned to an appalling 40,000 people.

Our health care system is deeply interconnected, and more seniors on long-term-care wait-lists means more pressure spread across the system.

Could the minister please explain how these new behavioural specialized units will address these pressures, especially for the residents in Scarborough–Rouge Park?

Last night, my private member’s bill, Till Death Do Us Part, passed second reading. While it’s a very hopeful step for seniors in the province of Ontario, there is still so much more that we can do to ensure that senior couples are reunited in long-term care.

For Jim and Joan, who have been separated for five years, after 65 years of marriage—yesterday was their anniversary—there is a toll on their health. Jim is now seeing a heart specialist. Joan’s mental health has declined. There is the saying, “Love is patient, and love is kind”—but love is running out of patience, and they are running out of time.

What I want to ask the Minister of Long-Term Care today: Will this government commit to Jim and Joan and thousands of other seniors across this province that you will bring my bill forward at the social policy committee, that we will call delegations, and that we will ensure that reunification for seniors in Ontario is possible, that it is resourced, that it is funded, and that seniors who enter long-term care never have to go through the pain and anguish that Jim and Joan McLeod have experienced over the years?