Jamie Thompson is a medical student at the Northern Ontario School of Medicine in Thunder Bay. Her interests lie in health advocacy, OBGYN, Indigenous health and Métis beadwork.
Contraceptives are a key part of health care for half of Canada's population and their benefits extend beyond family planning alone. It is time to expand universal contraception to the entire country.
For those living in rural and remote communities in Northern Ontario, access to affordable contraception is not only a financial issue, but one of equity and human rights.
For the Ford government, midwives' demands for equitable pay are unacceptable. But instead of using tax dollars to fight midwives in court, Ford should recognize gender-based inequities, address the pay gap and invest in rural and northern midwifery programs.