NDP Health and Long-Term Care Critic France Gélinas (MPP, Nickel Belt) is expressing dismay at the McGuinty government’s decision to scrap an independent review of eHealth Ontario’s spending practices.

Yesterday, it was revealed that Health Minister David Caplan quietly pulled the plug on the review being conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers. On June 1st, Caplan had announced the review with great fanfare.

“Who is the Minister trying to fool? The consultants were on the case for almost two months. What did they find and how much did it cost taxpayers? If there is a preliminary report, Ontarians deserve to see it,” said Gélinas.

“Each day during Question Period before the Legislature recessed for the summer, I would ask about the eHealth spending scandal. Both the Premier and the Health Minister deflected the questions with assurances that PricewaterhouseCoopers, ‘the world’s foremost auditing management firm’, would be allowed to get the bottom of it.”

Gélinas is particularly appalled by the timing of decision to end the review.

“On a Friday afternoon, in the middle of the dog days of summer, the Minister, with the stroke of a pen, quietly put an end to this probe. It sure smells like a cover-up to me,” Gélinas said.

“Quite obviously, the McGuinty government is prepared to go to great lengths to prevent Ontarians from getting to the bottom of this scandal which we already know involves some of Ontario’s best-connected Liberal operatives.”

In an effort to get to the bottom of the story, the NDP caucus today filed a Freedom of Information request asking for all details of the contract with PricewaterhouseCoopers.