PEI Becomes Latest Province to Sign New Healthcare Agreement

Last week, Prince Edward Island agreed to a new healthcare accord with the federal government, securing an additional $45.1 million over the next ten years. British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec still remain without a new agreement.

When asked about the new accord, federal Health Minister Jane Philpott stated, “They’ve got some great plans there [Prince Edward Island] about how they want to make sure they expand access to home care, and of course they have significant issues like everyone else in the country as it relates to mental health.”

Minister Philpott also mentioned that the federal government is “determined” to finalize agreements with the five remaining provinces.

Challenges Ahead

There still seems to be several key challenges the federal and provincial governments face in regards to securing a new healthcare agreement.

Manitoba recently launched the website www.gov.mb.ca/sharethehealth to help spread awareness about why they have not signed a new accord. On this website, the provincial government states that, “Over the next ten years, the current federal funding proposal will provide nearly $30 billion less than what the evidence shows is needed to maintain the sustainability of healthcare systems, even with an additional $11 billion targeted funding.”

When asked about the likelihood of the five remaining provinces securing a new accord, CCSN President & CEO Jackie Manthorne said, “It might take some time, but we remain confident that the two levels of government can come to an agreement. It is good to see that both the federal and provincial governments are looking to find the best possible solution for all constituents, and we are hopeful that when all of this is said and done, everyone will be satisfied with the agreement.”

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NT, NU, YT and SK ink new deal with Feds

In the last couple of days, three territorial governments as well as one provincial government have signed separate, bilateral healthcare agreements with the federal government. The Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Yukon and Saskatchewan join New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador as provinces/territories who have signed separate deals in the past month.

The breakdowns for the new agreements are:

                Northwest Territories will receive $7.4 million to support better home care and $6.1 million to fund new mental health initiatives.

                Nunavut will receive $6.1 million to support better home care and $5.1 million to fund new mental health initiatives.

                Yukon will receive $6.2 million to support better home care and $5.2 million to fund new mental health initiatives.

                Saskatchewan will receive $190.3 million to support better home care and $158.5 million to fund new mental health initiatives.

Similar to the other agreements, if other provinces are able to negotiate a better agreement, these territories will also be able to secure equal funding.

Yukon Premier Sandy Silver

Yukon Premier Sandy Silver commented on the news saying that the new deal will “ensure Yukon residents can access the healthcare they need.”  Northwest Territories Premier Bob McLeod added that the new agreement “will help provide better care to some of our most vulnerable residents.”

With annual increases in federal health transfers due to drop in April, there is still time for the other provinces come to a new agreement, but the clock is ticking.

“The key thing to remember about this process is that healthcare needs differ depending on each province and territory.” said Jackie Mantorne, President & CEO of the Canadian Cancer Survivor Network. “The parties who have signed agreements with the federal government needed to ensure that they had funding in place, which they have done. It will be interesting to see the details of the new health transfers if/when the other provinces come to an agreement.”

Moving Forward

Health and Finance ministers from the remaining provinces who have not signed new agreements (British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec and Prince Edward Island) continue to work with the federal government on a new agreement. It is reported that Prince Edward Island is close on securing a new healthcare agreement. 

NB, NS and Newfoundland & Labrador Sign Agreements

Before the holidays, we shared a blog titled “Federal andprovincial governments clash about healthcare funding.” Since then, certain parties have made significant moves which could ultimately affect all Canadians.

Since our original post, three of the four Atlantic provinces have signed separate, bilateral healthcare agreements with the federal government.

New Brunswick was the first province to move forward with its own healthcare deal on December 22, 2016. This agreement gives the province 230 million dollars in funding over 10 years for healthcare and for programs for seniors.

Shortly after, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador followed suit and agreed to their own unique healthcare deals.

The Nova Scotia government noted that they will receive approximately $287 million in new funding.  When asked about the agreement, Nova Scotia Finance Minister Randy Delorey said, “We were up in Ottawa, we did say we wanted to continue the conversations with the federal government; they reached out to have conversations and that’s our responsibility to the people of Nova Scotia.”

As for Newfoundland and Labrador, they agreed to a total of $160 million in new funding over the next 10 years.

Even though these agreements are already in place, all three include a fairly important clause which allows the three provinces to change their specific agreements if another province is able to secure a better deal from the federal government. Essentially, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador are ’hedging their bets’ so that if anyone else is able to negotiate a better agreement, they will be able to secure equal funding.

After hearing about these individual agreements, Quebec Health Minister Gaetan Barrette and Ontario Finance Minister Charles Sousa Minister both voiced their displeasure. On December 22, Minister Barrette tweeted that, "NB chooses to accept reduction of fed funding from 23,3% to 20% but also rely on other provinces to fight for a better offer. #cdnpoli". Minister Sousa added that it is "inappropriate for the federal government to be rushing before Christmas to cut 'side deals' with some provinces, rather than trying to seriously negotiate a national deal that's in all Canadian's best interests." 

So what does this all mean?

With three fewer provinces working towards a new agreement, some commentators believe that it will be harder for other provincial governments to continue negotiating a better offer than what was on the table before. With that being said, there are still a number of provinces which continue to demand an increase in funding.

“We remain optimistic that both the provincial and federal governments can come to an agreement that will improve patient care across Canada.” said Jackie Manthorne, President & CEO of the Canadian Cancer Survivor Network. “Our hope is that all provinces that remain without a new agreement can work together to secure the best possible deal for all Canadian patients.”