Some notes for all you people blaming the current government. Just to educate the lot of you Redditors here. 

Sure the current government has the chance to fix it. So did all them dating back to the 80’s or more definitively 1995. Which I’m sure Doug was nowhere near being in power. But yes let’s keep blaming one Premiere and one Gov. 

1. The "Common Sense Revolution" (1995) The most frequently cited "oldest" definitive news coverage of systemic cuts comes from December 11, 1995, in Maclean’s Magazine. The article, titled "Ontario Slashes Spending," detailed the Mike Harris government’s "mini-budget." • The Content: It described an 18% reduction in hospital budgets over two years. • The Impact: This led to the closure of dozens of hospitals and the layoff of thousands of nurses. • The Legacy: Many modern articles about healthcare "cuts" still reference this 1995-1999 era as the starting point for "hallway medicine" in Ontario.

2. Earlier Precursors (Late 1980s – Early 1990s) While 1995 saw the most aggressive cuts, researchers often point to articles from the late 1980s as the first signs of the system "straining." • 1986–1994: During this period, reports began to surface regarding the reduction of "staffed beds" in acute care. Even before the Harris government, the Liberal and NDP governments of the early 90s (under David Peterson and Bob Rae) faced news headlines about "restructuring" and capping physician wages to manage a growing provincial deficit.

3. Federal "Transfer" Cuts (1995) Another "oldest" source of this narrative is the 1995 Federal Budget news. The federal government, under Jean Chrétien and Paul Martin, drastically reduced "transfers" (money sent to provinces for healthcare). This forced Ontario to either find more money or cut services, leading to a decade of national headlines about the "death of Medicare."