Sick Kids is getting a $2.4-billion booster shot from Premier Kathleen Wynne’s Liberals.Wynne announced Friday that the Hospital for Sick Children will receive the new capital funding in next week’s provincial budget. The money will go toward the design and construction of a new patient care centre that will add to the downtown Toronto hospital’s capacity. “As any parent knows, when a child is sick nothing else matters,” said Wynne, a mother of three adult children and grandmother of three. “The incredible physicians, nurses, and staff members at Sick Kids understand that,” she said. “That’s what this historic investment in Sick Kids is all about and it’s why we’re building new and improved hospitals around the province.”Wynne’s announcement — the day after she said hospitals’ operating funding will jump by 4.6 per cent, or $822 million, next year — comes against the backdrop of a June 7 election. It’s part of $19 billion in hospital capital expenditures over the next decade. Details will be announced by Finance Minister Charles Sousa in next Wednesday’s budget. Sick Kids president and CEO Michael Apkon said the investment would “ensure that we are able to deliver safe, cutting-edge care to the most critically ill children in Ontario for generations to come.”Progressive Conservative Leader Doug Ford, who is ahead of Wynne in public opinion polls, has said the premier is writing cheques that won’t clear. Ford is pledging $5.6 billion in unspecified cuts if he wins the election.NDP Leader Andrea Horwath has said the Liberals have starved hospitals for years as they have strived to contain costs. Read more:Ontario government to boost hospital funding by $822M to ease overcrowding, wait timesKathleen Wynne announces $2.1 billion in new mental health funding over four yearsLiberals and Tories fling accusations at each other as the 2018 electio ...
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