Millions in taxpayer dollars earmarked for Ontario LTC company that allegedly left residents malnourished

The Doug Ford government says it has allocated hundreds of beds to the Ontario for-profit long-term care chains at the centre of a military report that shocked the nation more than a year ago with details of horrifying conditions and neglect.

Sienna Senior Living, which owns Woodbridge Vista Care Community and Altamont Care Community, two long-term care homes where 84 people died altogether, is in the running to get public funds to build 223 new and 577 redeveloped beds — a move that critics say “rewards” the companies behind the deadliest homes.

In a five-part series, CTV News Toronto is examining the province's decision to allocate new beds and funding to the five companies, guaranteeing their future. Click the link to read the previous installment on Southbridge Care Homes.

Nick Puopolo’s heart sank when he saw 10 ambulances parked outside Woodbridge Vista Care Community on one May night during the first COVID-19 wave in Ontario. He said he tried to look inside, past the glaring lights, to see if his mother was inside one of them. The long-term care home, he said, had left him in the dark for weeks and he did not know if she was even alive.

The only information he said he got from the home came from personal support workers (PSWs), who would hurriedly call him and leave quick notes before hanging up, saying the situation was dire, that they needed help and that a single worker would care for 30 residents at a time. He said the staff spoke in secrecy, afraid Sienna Senior Living, the company behind the home, would punish them.