Close X
Thursday, November 14, 2024
ADVT 
National

Health Money Is On The Table, Up To Provinces Whether To Take It: Trudeau

IANS, 27 Jan, 2017 12:36 PM
    WINNIPEG — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says tens of billions in federal health transfer payments are there for the taking if the provinces want them.
     
    He also reiterated that Ottawa is offering an additional $5 billion in targeted funding over 10 years for mental-health care.
     
    "We've put forward significant amounts of money. It's (up) to provinces whether they want that money or not," Trudeau said before a town-hall meeting in Winnipeg.
     
    He did not answer a question about whether he would impose a deadline to reach a deal.
     
    The three territories, three Atlantic provinces and Saskatchewan have signed onto the federal government's health-funding plan.
     
    Trudeau said he is looking forward to working with the hold-out provinces "to make sure we're responding to the needs of Canadians.
     
    "For almost 10 years, the previous government had nothing to do with the provinces on health care ... and therefore Canadians felt that their health-care outcomes and system was suffering."
     
    The prime minister was in the Manitoba capital on Thursday as part of a cross-country tour to meet with Canadians and hear their concerns. It was the same day Manitoba launched an online ad campaign criticizing the federal government's plan to limit annual increases in health transfer payments.
     
     
    Health Minister Kelvin Goertzen has said the campaign is intended to educate Manitobans about what the Liberals "are going to do in terms of reducing their health-care services."
     
    The federal government has been criticized for weeks over its plan to limit how quickly health transfers increase.
     
    A deal reached in 2004 saw transfers rise about six per cent a year for a decade. The Liberal government is offering annual increases of either three per cent or a three-year average of economic growth, whichever is higher.
     
    Federal Health Minister Jane Philpott has said the funding increases being offered are significant and will address gaps.
     
    "The $11.5 billion (in mental-health and home care) offer we put on the table in December has the potential to be transformative and make a difference in the lives of Canadians,'' she said in an email to The Canadian Press earlier this week.
     
    Goertzen has suggested the hold-out provinces might also conduct public campaigns.
     
    "I can tell you that in the discussions that we've had with other provinces, they recognize the need to communicate the difficulty this will put them and their residents in."

    MORE National ARTICLES

    New Brunswick University Says It Knows Who Carved Swastika On Snow-Covered Field

    New Brunswick University Says It Knows Who Carved Swastika On Snow-Covered Field
    Photos of a swastika carved in the snow at Alumni Field at the Sackville, N.B., university were captured on social media over the weekend.

    New Brunswick University Says It Knows Who Carved Swastika On Snow-Covered Field

    PM Trudeau To Meet Trump In The 'Next 30 Days Or So' To Talk New NAFTA Deal

    A spokesman for Donald Trump confirmed the upcoming discussions as he held his first daily White House briefing Monday and took questions on trade, counter-terrorism and a dispute over him making misleading statements.

    PM Trudeau To Meet Trump In The 'Next 30 Days Or So' To Talk New NAFTA Deal

    Mojito With Your Manicure? B.C. Now Let's Businesses Apply For Liquor Licences

    Mojito With Your Manicure? B.C. Now Let's Businesses Apply For Liquor Licences
    From book stores to barber shops, businesses across British Columbia can now ask the provincial government for permission to serve liquor.

    Mojito With Your Manicure? B.C. Now Let's Businesses Apply For Liquor Licences

    Quebec Motorist Charged In Death Of Pregnant Woman

    Quebec Motorist Charged In Death Of Pregnant Woman
    QUEBEC — A Quebec man is facing three charges in the death of a pregnant woman who was struck by a vehicle at a pedestrian crossing last summer.

    Quebec Motorist Charged In Death Of Pregnant Woman

    2 Bodies Exhumed In Investigation Into Former Ontario Nurse Charged With Murder

    2 Bodies Exhumed In Investigation Into Former Ontario Nurse Charged With Murder
    LONDON, Ont. — Police have exhumed two bodies as part of an ongoing murder investigation into the deaths of eight Ontario seniors who were allegedly killed by a former nurse.

    2 Bodies Exhumed In Investigation Into Former Ontario Nurse Charged With Murder

    Montreal-Area City Of Westmount Reaches Agreement With Sexual-Abuse Victims

    Montreal-Area City Of Westmount Reaches Agreement With Sexual-Abuse Victims
    MONTREAL — The Montreal-area city of Westmount says it has reached a settlement with the sex-abuse victims of one of its former employees.

    Montreal-Area City Of Westmount Reaches Agreement With Sexual-Abuse Victims