Auditor general includes Switch Health contract to test farm workers in spending review

Ontario's auditor general will include a contract between the province and private mobile testing company Switch Health, which was employed to swab farm workers in Windsor-Essex, in her review of COVID-19 spending by the province. 

The news comes after Essex NDP MPP Taras Natyshak raised questions about the contract last week — his main concern being a pre-existing relationship between Switch lobbyist Jeff Silverstein and Ontario Premier Doug Ford.

Silverstein previously worked as the communications director for the Progressive Conservative party and was responsible for OntarioNewsNow — a platform Ford uses to share updates from his government. 

Natyshak requested auditor general Bonnie Lysyk review the contract in a letter sent July 14. 

In a response dated July 17, and sent to CBC Windsor on July 23, Lysyk says the agreement with Switch Health will be one of many items her and her team look over as part of their COVID-19 Preparedness and Management audit that is assessing how the province spent money on pandemic-related resources. 

On-farm testing stalled

In a news release, Natyshak and the NDP said they are also keen to learn more about the agreement considering on-farm testing in the region has stalled. 

As of July 6, 19 farms have completed on-site testing, according to Ontario Health — two weeks later, that number remains the same. 

On Monday, Ontario Health said in an email that while testing continues to be offered in the area, the contract with Switch Health — which began at the end of June — has already come to an end. 

Natyshak has said the details of the contract were never clear and he worries that removing the task from public health agencies have created accountability and transparency issues. 

Ontario health defends decision to hire Switch Health

Ontario Health did not comment on ties between Switch Health and the Ford government, but in an emailed statement to CBC News on July 15 it said it is the agency accountable for the process and selected Switch Health's COVID-19 mobile testing service from 15 potential vendors "in light of the on-site testing needs on farms in the Windsor-Essex region." 

The statement said that Ontario Health evaluated proposals from each potential vendor against standard criteria, which includes the ability to:

• Establish a requisition, completion and verification process.
• Enforce social distancing protocols.
• Travel to facilities to conduct testing.
• Support gathering specimens. 

"Switch Health conducted the majority, though not all, on-site testing in Windsor-Essex," reads the statement. "Approximately 2,800 agri-farm workers have been tested to date...approximately 1,800 of these on-site at farms."    

Swabs were then analyzed in London labs.

In response to Ontario Health's comments, Natyshak said the government still hasn't shared anything about who the company is, the payment it will receive, if the contract was tendered or sole-sourced and the terms of the contract.

He said he's also worried that Switch Health does not have the experience to handle pandemic services, questioning how the company was able to scale up to match the number of tests needed. 

Natyshak said he won't hesitate to file freedom of information requests to get the answers he's looking for but, he added, that too is part of the problem with awarding the contract to a private company.

"That indicates even more cautionary tales around using private healthcare providers [because] when you do want to get answers, you do have to FOI it rather than actually asking the elected officials and ministry representatives for clear information." 

Local health unit not concerned 

At the health unit's daily briefing on July 14, Windsor-Essex's medical officer of health Dr. Wajid Ahmed said he is "not concerned" about a private company stepping in to pick up the work. 

Natyshak blames the need for extra resources in public health on the current government saying it's "directly as a result of the cuts that Doug Ford and the PC government have made to public health over the last two years." 

He says he thinks there is the capacity for public health agencies to take on the testing and says he would like to see a more coordinated use of public resources.