It seriously disadvantaged international medical graduates, physicians who studied abroad but became permanent residents of Canada. The policy, announced just as medical students were applying for residency positions, was almost immediately challenged on constitutional grounds. Demanding that medical residents attend Ontario high schools is not a way of ensuring they are well educated, it’s a proxy for weeding out candidates based on their national origin. The only argument the Ontario government has ever put forth for justifying the “studied in an Ontario high school” rule was that it would ensure medical residents remain in the province after they complete their training. According to the province’s own data, both international medical graduates and Canadian medical graduates have the exact same retention rates – 87 per cent.

Source: International New York Times April 10, 2026 18:14 UTC