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10 - Orono Weekly Times Wednesday, April 14, 2010 Staying in Touch MPP John O'Toole ed many pharmacists in my Riding. As with all provincial initiatives, your comments are always welcome. I may be reached at 905-697-1501 or 1800-661-2433 and by e-mail at john.otooleco@pc.ola.org. Children's Treatment Centres Receive $9 Million Ontario is investing an additional $9 million per year in Children's Treatment Centres. In making the announcement last week, the provincial government said this will support new programs and improve existing services to help ensure children get the treatment they need faster and closer to home. An estimated 3,600 kids with disabilities and special needs will benefit from improved services and lower wait times at 20 Children's Treatment Centres across Ontario. The Centres provide a range of services such as rehabilitation, physiotherapy and speech language therapy. This funding means more support for the Grandview Children's Treatment Centre in Oshawa. I remain concerned about funding of Children's Aid Societies, as they are experiencing funding deficits and this hurts vulnerable children. GO Transit Adds Another Oshawa-Toronto Train As of early April, an additional train trip has been added on the Lakeshore East GO Transit line between Oshawa and Toronto. Starting April 5, the GO Train schedule was adjusted to add the trip for commuters traveling from Oshawa to Union Station. There will now be trains leaving Oshawa at 6:47 a.m., 7:00 a.m. and 7:15 a.m. The trains will make all stops to Pickering and then run express to Union Station. Commuters taking these trains will get to Union Station in less than an hour. On a typical weekday, GO runs 185 train trips and over 2,000 bus trips that carry about 217,000 passengers. This reduces the number of car trips by about 187,000. GO Transit moves 55 million riders a year. I look forward to hearing your views on transit issues. Ontario Coaches Week From April 17-25, the fifth annual Ontario Coaches Week aims to recruit, develop and celebrate Ontario's community coaches. More information is available online at www.coachesontario.ca . A number of free coaching events, including certification program courses and appreciation events are taking place across Ontario. Church Directory Newcastle United Church Nursery Care Provided Wheelchair Accessible Rev. James Feairs, B.A., M.Div., Minister More Green Energy Projects Announced Ontario consumers learned last week that 184 new contracts for larger green energy projects have been approved. Their combined output is about 2,500 megawatts, with sun and wind power not available all the time. By comparison, the Darlington Generating Station has a capacity of 3,524 megawatts. While most Ontarians support green energy, there are several questions that need answers, beginning with an update on the expected new price of electricity under the new Feed-in Tariff (FIT) program. The FIT price can be as high as 80.2 cents per kilowatt hour for electricity from solar power. By the way, Ontario's price for electricity is about 5 to 6 cents per kilowatt hour. Keep in mind the fact that we are already facing higher electricity bills because of the following: Time of Use Pricing (also known as Smart Meters); Harmonized Sales Tax, which adds eight per cent to the price of electricity as of July 1; The new conservation tax; The Samsung deal and applications by utilities for price increases. The London Economic Institute has estimated the added price of green energy initiatives will be around $600 per year for Ontario households. The question is not about supporting green energy. It is about ensuring Ontario has a safe, reliable supply of power at the right price. Experts often refer to Denmark as an example of a jurisdiction that has moved to a green energy policy. Keep in mind that Denmark consumers pay about 34 cents/kWh for electricity. The Province must also explain its plan for the new build at the Darlington Generating Station and the refurbishment of existing nuclear generating stations in order to provide a reliable source of baseload power. The nuclear refurbishing and new build are projected to cost approximately $25 billion. All of this must be funded through financing or through the rate base. (That's us.) It is important that we use Ontario and Canadian (not foreign) technology and workers. We need to use the workforce, expertise and businesses available right here in Durham. To me, all of this points to considerably higher energy bills. Federal-Provincial Funds Improve Local Highways Under the Infrastructure Stimulus Fund, the governments of Canada and Ontario are providing $138.7 million in joint funding for 43 infrastructure improvements to highways, bridges and local roads across Ontario. Locally, these funds include $2.2 million for various bridge repairs in York/Durham plus $500,000 for bridge rehabilitation at Wilmot Creek, on Highway 35. There is still nothing certain regarding the start date for the 407 East completion project. Since 2007, the governments of Canada and Ontario have committed more than $13 billion in funding infrastructure projects across Ontario. Province Cuts Funding for Prescription Drugs The McGuinty government announced last week it is planning further changes in Ontario's prescription drug system. Remember, drugs are not part of Ontario's healthcare funding unless you are a senior, someone whose earnings are below a certain income threshold, or an individual receiving provincial benefits such as Ontario disability support. An estimated 2.8 million clients receive coverage from provincial drug programs. In making the announcement, Ontario's Health Minister claimed that the costs of generic drugs would be lowered by at least 50%, to 25% of the cost of the original brand name medicine. This would affect many employer drug plans, people who pay for drugs out-of-pocket and Ontario's publicly funded drug system. Pharmacies are concerned that they cannot absorb the provincial cutbacks resulting from the drug company professional fees being taken away from pharmacies. Of particular concern is the future of small town drugstores. The industry has warned that the outcome will be fewer pharmacies and reduced services. Clearly, a change of this magnitude needs full consultation among healthcare professionals, patients, and elected MPPs. When I first learned about these changes, I contact- newcastleunitedchurch@bellnet.ca 84 Mill St. S., 905-987-4515 Orono United Church Rev. Timothy Dayfoot 111 Church St. N. orono.uc@rogers.com 905-485-5502 Sunday, April 18 Easter 3, Faith in Motion Workshop Rotation (5 yrs. - teen): Joseph - Pyramid Playground, Toy Shop, Food Shop Sunday, April 18 Third Sunday of Easter 11 am Service Wheelchair Accessible Sunday School & Nursery Room Available Rev. Canon David R. Saunders, CD Anglican Churches St. Saviour's - Orono 27 Mill Street · 905-987-2019 9:30 a.m. - Worship, Sunday School Youth Group · Holy Communion - 1st & 3rd Sunday Morning Prayer - 2nd & 4th Sunday · Coffee and Fellowship to follow New Website: www.stsavioursorono.ca St. George's - Newcastle 250 Mill St. S. · 905-987-2019 8 a.m. - Commumion 11:15 a.m. - Worship , Sunday School Holy Communion 1st & 3rd Sunday · Morning Prayer 2nd & 4th Sunday Coffee and Fellowship to follow Donations always appreciated at the 1418 C l a r i n g t o n E a s t F o o d B a n k · 987-1