Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government will commit C$46.2 billion ($34.4 billion) in new funding over the next decade to help prop up Canada’s health-care system, which is struggling to keep up with demand.
(Bloomberg) — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government will commit C$46.2 billion ($34.4 billion) in new funding over the next decade to help prop up Canada’s health-care system, which is struggling to keep up with demand.
Some C$17.3 billion of the money is to top-up the Canada Health Transfer over the next decade, including a guarantee of annual increases of at least 5% for the next five years. Trudeau is also promising an immediate C$2 billion boost to that fund.
The transfer currently increases by at least 3% each year, although it can be higher because it tracks the three-year average of nominal growth in output. In the fiscal year that began last April, the transfer rose to C$45.2 billion, or 9.4% of total federal program expenses.
Trudeau told reporters on Tuesday that Canada’s universal health-care system is supposed to mean that no matter where you live or what you earn, “you will always be able to get the medical care you need.”
“But right now, our health-care system isn’t living up to that promise,” he said.
The Covid-19 pandemic pushed the country’s government-dominated medical system to the brink. Along with a backlog of surgeries created by the crisis, some hospitals have had to temporarily shut down emergency rooms that don’t have enough staff. Family physicians are also in short supply in some regions — forcing many newcomers to immigrant-friendly Canada to rely on walk-in clinics, telephone and online appointments or ER visits.
In addition to increased general transfers, Trudeau is promising C$25 billion over 10 years for side deals with provinces on priority areas, including mental-health services, health-worker shortages and modernizing health systems.
The new funding was announced Tuesday afternoon after the prime minister wrapped up a meeting with the premiers of Canada’s provinces, who have jurisdiction over delivering health care.
The premiers had been calling for C$28 billion more in federal funding per year — substantially above what Trudeau is offering. However, federal officials have argued the provinces aren’t taking into account the extra taxing power they were given in the 1970s to boost health-care funding.
The provincial leaders said in a joint news conference after the meeting that they were disappointed the federal funding fell far short of their request, but largely took a conciliatory tone.
“I always welcome new funding, no matter how small or large,” Ontario Premier Doug Ford said. “We see this as a starting point. It’s a down payment on further discussions.”
In exchange for the new funding, the federal government is asking provinces to commit to “improving how health information is collected, shared, used, and reported to Canadians to promote greater transparency on results.”
Overall, total federal funding for health is projected to grow by C$196.1 billion over 10 years, the government said. That includes other funding promises made over the past few years, as well as the automatic increases to the Canada Health Transfer already built into the system.
(Updates with Trudeau’s comments starting in fourth paragraph)
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