TORONTO – Health and Long-Term Care Minister George Smitherman today received the report by the Honourable Elinor Caplan, who was commissioned by the Ontario government to do an independent review of the competitive bidding process used by Community Care Access Centres (CCACs).

"I want to thank Elinor Caplan for her invaluable report on the CCAC bidding process," Smitherman said. "Her work will help us to create a home care system that values continuity and quality of care above all else and brings stability to the home care workforce and the patients in their care."

The Caplan report contains 70 recommendations on a range of issues related to the competitive bidding process including continuity and quality of care, better integration of home care in the health care system, research, accountability and workforce stability. Smitherman said the government will need time to carefully review the report recommendations. He said the government will respond to the report this fall.

Last October, Caplan, a former Ontario health minister and federal cabinet minister, began her review of the Request for Proposals (RFP) process used by CCACs to select service providers to deliver home care services. Since 1997, CCACs have been using the RFP process to obtain nursing, medical supplies and equipment, personal support and homemaking, and therapy services for their clients.

"Roy Romanow says that home care is the next essential service and it's a priority in our government's plan to improve health care," said Smitherman. "People receiving home care need to know that they are getting the very best services for as long as they need them," Smitherman said.

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