Huras out as Southeast LHIN changes to east region

Changes are now moving forward with the Local Health Integration Networks, including here in our region.

Quinte News has learned that the province has terminated, with severance pay, nine CEOs of provincial LHINs, with five remaining staying in and overseeing larger regions.

The Ministry of Health and Long Term Care says the Southeast LHIN will be clustered in the East Region of Ontario Health, with Renato Discenza taking the reins.

Paul Huras, who was CEO of the Southeast LHIN, has been let go. Huras, along with the eight other CEOs, will receive a total of $9 million in severance pay.

The Southeast LHIN will amalgamate with the east region including the Central East LHIN, and Champlain LHIN.

The current region included Quinte, Lanark, Leeds, Grenville, Kingston, rural Hastings, Lennox and Addington, and rural Frontenac.

The new east region will include Northumberland County, Peterborough County, Durham, parts of Scarborough, east to the Quebec border, north to Petawawa.

What happens to the local offices is not known at this time.

FROM THE CANADIAN PRESS BELOW

The province’s 14 LHINs and six health agencies will be consolidated into a new super agency called Ontario Health for an estimated $350 million a year in savings.

As a preliminary step in the process, Health Minister Christine Elliott announced Wednesday that five of those six agencies will transfer to Ontario Health as of December 2.

Trillium Gift of Life Network, which is responsible for organ and tissue donation and transplantation services, will be transferred later.

Elliott says the changes will have no impact on patients, and employees will continue to do the same work, but Ontario Health will now be their employer.

The government has said the LHINs will eventually be eliminated entirely, but for now five CEOs will remain to oversee different regions until the merger is complete.