The northern premiers agree to the plan, but they write to Trudeau to ask the feds to change their mind
Territorial premiers have given their official approval to a federal health care plan that will give the North a small boost in health care funding, but not as much as the premiers had asked for.
The plan in question was announced last week. It is supposed to give billions of dollars to provincial health-care systems. Nunavut Premier P.J. Akeeagok says the amount coming north is much less than what the northern premiers wanted to see, and N.W.T. Health Minister Julie Green says this is a disappointment.
Funding for Investing in Health in Territorie
- $10 million a year for N.W.T., which is a rise of $2.9 million.
- The Yukon will get $10 million a year, which is $3.6 million more than before.
- Nunavut will get $15 million a year, which is $1.5 million more than before.
In a statement Thursday, Akeeagok called for a bigger federal investment in the Funding for Investing in Health in Territories, which helps pay for medical travel and also gives territories a bit of money to try out new health care initiatives.
He said that the renewal of this fund by the federal government, which sets aside $175 million for all three territories over five years ($35 million a year), is less than half of what the premiers had asked for.
Akeeagok wrote, “Our government, along with the Northwest Territories and Yukon, has written to Prime Minister Trudeau to ask the federal government to think again about a proposal the territories made in November.”
Under that plan, the fund would have been worth $75 million a year. Because Nunavut has its own health care problems, half of that money would go there.
What the deal mean
How much each territory will get from the deal is still being worked out, but Green said that the N.W.T. should get about $12 million in new funding.
“We told them how disappointed we were. “It’s not a big part of our budget,” said Green, whose department is worth about $600 million in the budget for the territory that is currently before the Legislative Assembly.
“But as a territory, we’ve decided to stay on board… and accept this deal.”
A file photo of N.W.T. Health Minister Julie Green (Emma Grunwald/CBC)Aside from the Funding for Investing in Health in Territories, the deal puts more money into the Canada Health Transfer for emergency services. Green said the N.W.T. would be getting an immediate $2-million top-up to that fund, though it isn’t clear yet what the other territories will get.
This health transfer, from which the NWT got $53 million in 2022–2023, will also go up by 10% this year, and it will keep going up in the years to come.
Territories will also get money through so-called tailored bilateral agreements, which cover four priorities: family health services, health workers and backlogs, mental health and substance abuse, and modernizing health care systems.
Green said that the N.W.T. would get about $7 million in bilateral funding, which would help it grow its family medicine residency program, which only takes in two students each year.
“More than coming up with new ideas, what we’re trying to do is make sure what we already have works well,” she said.
As for the Yukon, Premier Ranj Pillai said that the territory plans to sign an agreement with the federal government for the money and then work out the details. The Yukon also expects to get just over $7 million in bilateral funding. Pillai said that the priorities of the federal government for this money match the priorities of the Yukon.
Pillai said, “We’re happy with what we’re seeing.”