OTTAWA, ON, July 12, 2024 /CNW/ - Canadians deserve better access to health care services and affordable medicines, regardless of where they live or their ability to pay. However, the health system in Canada has been facing significant challenges, such as overwhelmed emergency rooms, lack of access to a family doctor, and health care workers under enormous strain. The Government of Canada knows concerted and collaborative efforts by federal, provincial, and territorial governments are needed to continue to address these challenges.

Today, the Honourable Mark Holland, Minister of Health, highlighted recent actions taken by the government to strengthen the public health care system in Canada.

The Government of Canada has invested close to $200 billion over 10 years to improve health care services for Canadians. Within this funding, $25 billion is allocated through tailored bilateral agreements that address the unique health system needs of each province and territory in four areas of shared priority, including improving access to family health services and to mental health and substance use services, building our health workforce, and modernizing our health system through digital tools. With all provinces and territories having signed their bilateral agreement with the Government of Canada we are helping ensure Canadians get the care they need and deserve, and recognize health care workers for their essential role in keeping Canadians healthy.

Every Canadian and their health care providers should be able to access their health information securely, and digitally. In June 2024, the Government of Canada introduced the Connected Care for Canadians Act that would help health care workers make better, more informed decisions, and enable Canadians to securely access their own health data. This will empower patient's decision-making and improve the care they receive from health providers in Canada.

The Government of Canada, along with the provinces and territories, recently committed to take concrete actions to address health workforce challenges. In March 2024, the Government of Canada released the Nursing Retention Toolkit to help improve the working lives of nurses. On July 11 2024, the Government of Canada announced $47 million in federal funding for innovative projects to help support Canada's health workforce. These investments will inform retention and recruitment practices, support the mobility of physicians across Canada to help communities facing shortages, and investigate solutions to strengthen the health workforce and positively impact policy and practice. The Government of Canada is also providing student loan forgiveness of up to $60,000 for doctors and $30,000 for nurses who choose to work in rural and remote communities. Budget 2024 builds on this by expanding student loan forgiveness to more rural and remote health professionals, including dentists and dental hygienists, pharmacists, psychologists, physiotherapists, midwives, personal support workers, and social workers.

Additionally, dental care is an integral part of one's health and well-being. The Government of Canada launched the Canadian Dental Care Plan (CDCP) that will provide oral health care for up to nine million uninsured Canadian residents with an annual family income of less than $90,000. Eligible seniors, adults with a valid Disability Tax Credit certificate, parents and guardians of children under 18 can now apply. All remaining eligible Canadian residents between the ages of 18 and 64 will be able to apply online in 2025. To date, more than 250,000 Canadians have received care under the CDCP for services like cleaning, fillings, dentures from over 12,000 providers. 

In February 2024, the Government of Canada introduced the Pharmacare Act. Drug coverage for contraceptives will mean that nine million Canadians of reproductive age will have better access to contraception and reproductive autonomy, reducing the risk of unintended pregnancies and improving their ability to plan for the future. Furthermore, improving access to diabetes medications will help improve the health of 3.6 million Canadians living with diabetes, and reduce the risk of serious life-changing health complications, such as blindness or amputations.

Everyone in Canada deserves to get the health care they need when they need it. The Government of Canada understands that people are relying on all levels of government to come together to address the current challenges. The Government of Canada remains committed to working with provinces and territories to make health care more affordable and more accessible, and to achieve better health outcomes for everyone.

Quotes

"Our government's investments, from historic health funding, to dental care to pharmacare, will help ensure every Canadian gets the care they need when they need it. We are committed to supporting every generation, while also strengthening our universal public healthcare system."

The Honourable Mark Holland
Minister of Health

"Our government is making transformative investments to improve health care for all Canadians. From dental care to pharmacare to accessible mental health services – we're focused on making sure Canadians get the care they need, when they need it."

The Honourable Ya'ara Saks
Minister of Mental Health and Addictions and Associate Minister of Health

Quick Facts

• The Working Together investment includes $25 billion for tailored bilateral agreements with provinces and territories, a guaranteed 5% Canada Health Transfer (CHT) increase for the next five years—amounting to $17.5 billion—and a one-time CHT $2 billion top-up to address to urgent needs of emergency rooms and pediatric hospitals delivered in June 2023.
• The Pharmacare Act proposes the foundational principles for the first phase of national universal pharmacare in Canada and describes the Government of Canada's intent to work with provinces and territories to provide universal, first-dollar, single-payer coverage for a number of contraception and diabetes medications.
• The Connected Care for Canadians Act outlines Canada's plan to enable a modern, connected care system, in which health information can be securely accessed by patients and shared between providers, when needed. Enabling timely and secure access to personal health information is critical to saving lives and improving health care for Canadians.
• On March 4, 2024, the Government of Canada announced the release of the Nursing Retention Toolkit: Improving the Working Lives of Nurses in Canada to help improve the working lives of nurses. The toolkit provides an opportunity for employers and health authorities to work together to develop standardized programs across health care organizations and systems in Canada. This will support identifying existing initiatives that can be scaled up and spread to different organizations and jurisdictions to share best practices and support retention across Canada.
• On December 18, 2023, the Government of Canada announced the creation of the Canadian Drug Agency with an investment of over $89.5 million over five years, starting in 2024-25. The Agency will provide the dedicated leadership and coordination needed to make Canada's drug system more sustainable and prepared for the future and help Canadians achieve better health outcomes.
• On December 6, 2023, the Government of Canada welcomed the established of Health Workforce Canada (HWC). The organization has been created as a stand-alone entity that will work closely with the Canadian Institute of Health Information and all health care system stakeholders to improve the collection and sharing of health workforce data and share practical solutions and innovative practices.

SOURCE Health Canada (HC)