Provinces urge Ottawa to reverse health funding cuts

Canada’s health ministers to meet Tuesday in Toronto.

Thestar.com
Oct. 17, 2016
By Rob Ferguson

Canada’s medicare system will be shortchanged $1 billion next year unless the federal government reverses plans to cut funding increases in half, provincial and territorial health ministers warned Monday.

Forming a common front before a Tuesday meeting with their federal counterpart, Jane Philpott, the ministers urged the new Liberal administration in Ottawa not to chop transfer payment hikes to 3 per cent from 6 per cent starting in 2017.

Following through with the cut - a unilateral decision by the previous Conservative government of Stephen Harper in 2011 - would be a “huge blow” to patients, Ontario Health Minister Eric Hoskins told a news conference.

The decline in funding - which means $400 million less for Ontario - will make it harder to develop the innovative measures needed to make health care more cost-effective and harm efforts to improve access to mental health and addictions services, Hoskins added.

An increase of just 3 per cent in annual transfer payments from the federal government “simply isn’t sufficient to keep the lights on” in terms of maintaining the level of health care, he said.

Over the next 10 years, the cut means Ottawa would be spending $60 billion less on health care - money the provinces will have to make up if they hope to maintain the current level of services, the provincial ministers said in a joint statement.

They called for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to suspend the cuts until he can meet with provincial premiers and territorial leaders to reach a new agreement.

Meanwhile, Philpott has promised to spend $3 billion extra on home care - and palliative care - over the next four years, helping provinces with those costs as the population ages.

Hoskins said the provinces and territories, on average, now cover 80 per cent of costs in the health-care system.

The stalemate on federal health care funding comes as the provinces had hoped for a smoother relationship with the Trudeau regime than they experienced in the Harper years.

Hoskins, a Liberal, said there has been “exceptional collaboration” in some areas.

“We are hoping…that level of co-operation, collaboration and mutual respect will continue.”