Premiers demand meeting with Trudeau to discuss increased health-care funding
Premiers demand meeting with Trudeau to discuss increased health-care funding
A paramedic is seen outside ambulances parked at the entrance to the emergency department at Richmond General Hospital, in Richmond, B.C., Sunday, Nov. 27, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
OTTAWA -
Canada's premiers presented a united front Friday as they demanded Prime Minister Justin Trudeau come to the table personally to hammer out an agreement for Ottawa to shoulder more of the burden when it comes to health-care costs.
Premiers also defended their refusal to accept conditions for additional federal funds, and pushed back on any suggestion of throwing their own money into the pot even though some provinces are posting budget surpluses.
The provincial and territorial leaders issued their call for a sit-down with Trudeau after a closed-door meeting in Winnipeg, one month after talks with the federal government on health-care funding ended without an agreement.
Led by Manitoba Premier Heather Stefanson, the premiers reiterated their desire to see Ottawa cover 35 per cent of health-care costs across the country, up from the current 22 per cent, by increasing the Canada Health Transfer.
Provincial health ministers presented the same demand to federal Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos in Vancouver last month. But those talks ended without a deal, with Duclos saying provinces did not want to accept any conditions for the money.
Stefanson said it is time for the prime minister to negotiate an agreement in January.
"What we're calling for today is just a meeting to sit down with the prime minister to have the discussion about fair and sustainable funding for the future of health care in our country," Stefanson said at a news conference.
During a separate news conference on Parliament Hill, Duclos reiterated the federal government's willingness to work with provinces and territories on a long-term deal. However, he would not say if Trudeau would meet the premiers.
"The prime minister will obviously do what he wants to do," Duclos said.
"What he has asked me to do is to work with my colleagues, health ministers. … Now we need premiers to let us do our job and express publicly the type of outcomes and results that we need to achieve together."
The impasse comes as many health-care facilities, particularly children's hospitals, are struggling with a shortage of staff and overwhelming demand as a result of a combination of COVID-19, influenza and respiratory infections.
It also comes as some provinces are facing rosier fiscal situations than expected, with a number projecting budget surpluses. That has prompted some, such as the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, to question their demands.
The CCPA in a report last month projected that British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario and New Brunswick would have budget surpluses now and into the coming years that would help address some of the system's current problems.
Stefanson and others defended their position and accused Ottawa of unfairly dumping its obligations onto the provinces and territories at the expense of other priorities such as education and other services.
"What we see in these forecasts is that in the long term, the federal government will end up with surpluses and the provinces will increase their deficits because of the growing rate of increase for health care," said Quebec Premier Francois Legault.
Duclos said Friday that the federal government has been clear it is ready to contribute more to health care, but that Ottawa wants to know what results will be achieved with the additional funds before they are doled out.
"We first need to agree on the outcomes and the results we need to achieve together," he said. "So let's speak about the ends Γüá-- what we want to do Γüá-- and then assess the dollars needed from everyone, including the federal government, to achieve those results."
However, premiers have interpreted such talk as an attempt to dictate how money will be spent.
"Transparency and accountability, we have no problem with that," Ontario Premier Doug Ford said. "But we need the flexibility. First of all, we need the funding, and then we need the flexibility to be able to move those funds around where they're needed."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 9, 2022.
Correction
A previous version of this story incorrectly reported the topic of the premiers' meeting.
An Ontario man is being accused of changing his name, profession and life story multiple times to potentially more than 100 women online before leaving some out thousands of dollars.
U.S. President Joe Biden is using his State of the Union address Tuesday night to call on Republicans to work with him to 'finish the job' of rebuilding the economy and uniting the nation as he seeks to overcome pessimism in the country and navigate political divisions in Washington.
Rescuers raced against time early Wednesday to pull survivors from the rubble before they succumbed to cold weather two days after an earthquake tore through southern Turkiye and war-ravaged northern Syria. The death toll climbed above 7,700 and was expected to rise further.
As Valentine's Day approaches, many Canadians are preparing to celebrate by taking their loved ones to dinner and buying them gifts, but how much are we spending on this day coast to coast?
A new ranking by global travel site Big 7 Travel has revealed the most Instagrammable places for people to visit in 2023, but only one Canadian location, Banff, is among them.
After raising interest rates eight consecutive times, Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem told an audience in Quebec City on Tuesday that inflation is showing signs of 'turning the corner' and that the coming year 'will be different.'
Convicted murderer Daniel Jolivet, in prison for the past 30 years, has maintained his innocence since the day he was arrested. W5 reviews the evidence he painstakingly assembled while behind bars.
More than two years after downtown Beirut was levelled by an explosion, a Lebanese-Canadian family of a 3-year-old girl killed in the blast is still searching for answers.
In Canada, Medical Assistance in Dying is changing. In 2023, people who have a mental disorder as their sole underlying medical condition will become eligible for an assisted death. Originally, that was scheduled to happen on March 17, but the government has asked for a delay. CTVNews.ca/W5 outlines 9 things you need to know about MAiD.
On CTVNews.ca/W5: Executive Producer Derek Miller highlights an example of a W5 mini investigation that never made it to air, but made a difference in someone's life nonetheless.
On CTVNews.ca/W5: Executive Producer Derek Miller highlights some of W5's upcoming investigations, including Mexico's multi-billion dollar avocado industry run by cartels, and a continuing look into the Pivot Airlines passengers and crew who were detained for months without charges in the Dominican Republic.
The five-member Pivot Airlines crew, who had been detained in the Dominican Republic for almost eight months, is now back in Canada. An emotional airport reunion took place in a special pre-arrivals area of Toronto Pearson International Airport, as the two flight attendants, pilot, co-pilot and mechanic were greeted by family.
An Ontario man is being accused of changing his name, profession and life story multiple times to potentially more than 100 women online before leaving some out thousands of dollars.
The federal government is pledging to increase health funding to Canada's provinces and territories by $196.1 billion over the next 10 years, in a long-awaited deal aimed at addressing Canada's crumbling health-care systems with $46.2 billion in new funding.
Meaghan Maloney of London, Ont. said she was driving on her way to work, along Highway 401, in her 2023 Nissan Rogue when the sunroof shattered without warning.
There is a new sign of financial issues with an Ottawa construction company that suddenly closed, leaving customers with unfinished projects unable to recoup their losses.
The Huntsville man charged in connection with a boat crash that claimed the life of a swimmer in Muskoka last summer has been identified by his family as 26-year-old Zack Foyston.
Canadian Blood Services in Barrie is working to fill hundreds of empty appointments this month, with the service relying on the generosity of many regular donors.
A dog in desperate need of care was found abandoned during frigid temperatures over the weekend and is just one of the many cases of abandoned dogs, according to Animal Control in that area.
Roundabouts are under the microscope in Waterloo region as regional councillors are reviewing the safety of the road design following a pair of serious collisions involving pedestrians.
A special weather statement is in effect for most of the southern Ontario. A strong low pressure system will bring rain that is heavy at times to London-Middlesex and surrounding areas beginning early Thursday morning.
A River Canard, Ont. woman has solved part of a mystery she uncovered while decluttering her home last month. A woman who goes by the name of JoJo reached out to CTV News Windsor last week in an attempt to identify several anonymous war time photographs along with several postcards she found in a box dating back to the 1940s.
Two people have died in a serious single-vehicle crash in Kingsville, a third person was injured and transported to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The federal government is pledging to increase health funding to Canada's provinces and territories by $196.1 billion over the next 10 years, in a long-awaited deal aimed at addressing Canada's crumbling health-care systems with $46.2 billion in new funding.
Quebec interim Liberal leader Marc Tanguay says that in wanting to close Roxham Road to prevent irregular entry of asylum seekers into Quebec, the Parti Québécois and its leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon are behaving like Donald Trump.
A former medical student who claims he fatally shot a fellow student in self-defence during a drug deal in Halifax denied Tuesday he planned to kill the man and steal the marijuana he was carrying.
Retirement is bittersweet for a Nova Scotia doctor who says she feels like she has abandoned the 2,000 patients she has been caring for because she was not able to find a doctor to replace her.
The federal government is pledging to increase health funding to Canada's provinces and territories by $196.1 billion over the next 10 years, in a long-awaited deal aimed at addressing Canada's crumbling health-care systems with $46.2 billion in new funding.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith expressed her concerns with the federal government's proposed 'just transition' legislation directly to the prime minister on Tuesday, saying she hopes the two can find some common ground.
If Alberta accepts Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s federal health proposal, it would see, on average, $2.5 billion over the next 10 years, in line with population growth.
While some premiers are calling the health-care offer presented by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Tuesday "disappointing," B.C.'s David Eby stopped short of that characterization.
At 2:18 Run in Victoria, Phil Nicholls is wondering what an economic slowdown might mean for his small business specializing in high-end sneakers and clothing.
The federal government is pledging to increase health funding to Canada's provinces and territories by $196.1 billion over the next 10 years, in a long-awaited deal aimed at addressing Canada's crumbling health-care systems with $46.2 billion in new funding.
The federal commission looking into the Liberal government's decision to use the Emergencies Act is being granted an extension to deliver its report to the cabinet and the public at the same time this month.
As negotiations continue between premiers and the federal government, former Quebec premier Jean Charest is criticizing the feds' string-attached approach to health-care funding, stating that Ottawa should not be in the business of operating health-care systems.
A U.S. survey found that people who had a personal connection to someone who became ill or died of COVID-19 were more likely to have received at least one shot of the vaccine compared to those who didn’t have any loved ones who had been impacted by the disease.
We may soon be able to detect humidity levels, respiratory changes or a too-wet diaper, all with a new type of sensor — one created by drawing with a pencil on specially-treated paper.
Balloons and drones were among 768 reported UFO sightings in Canada last year, according to Winnipeg-based researcher Chris Rutkowski, who also found that eight per cent of all cases remained unexplained.
Microsoft is fusing ChatGPT-like technology into its search engine Bing, transforming an internet service that now trails far behind Google into a new way of communicating with artificial intelligence.
We may soon be able to detect humidity levels, respiratory changes or a too-wet diaper, all with a new type of sensor — one created by drawing with a pencil on specially-treated paper.
Defence attorneys for actor Alec Baldwin are seeking to disqualify the special prosecutor in the case against him stemming from the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on a New Mexico film set.
Three men who disappeared after planning to rap at a Detroit party were killed by multiple gunshots, police said Tuesday, five days after their bodies were found in a vacant, rat-infested building.
Long before a bemused Riz Ahmed read its name on Oscar nominations morning, the title of Pamela Ribon's short film has tended to have an effect on those who hear it. Like when Ribon went to pick up her festival credential at SXSW in Austin, Texas, shortly before premiering her movie there.
The number of insolvencies filed by Canadian businesses in 2022 was up 37.2 per cent compared with 2021. The Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy says there were 3,402 business insolvencies last year, up from 2,480 in 2021.
A new poll finds one-third of Canadian households say their financial situation has worsened over the last year. According to a Leger poll commissioned by the Association for Canadian Studies, 34 per cent of Canadian households say they're financially worse off compared with a year ago.
Zoom is cutting about 1,300 jobs, or approximately 15% of its workforce. CEO Eric Yuan said in a blog post Tuesday that the company ramped up staffing during the COVID-19 pandemic, when businesses became increasingly reliant on its service as people worked from home. Yuan said Zoom grew three times in size within 24 months to manage demand.
As Valentine's Day approaches, many Canadians are preparing to celebrate by taking their loved ones to dinner and buying them gifts, but how much are we spending on this day coast to coast?
Ukrainian skier Ivan Kovbasnyuk, a two-time Olympian, can't train at home in the Carpathian Mountains because war in the country has damaged the power grid so severely that there's not enough energy to make the chairlifts operate.
Pro tennis player Jessica Pegula has revealed that her mother, Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres co-owner and president Kim Pegula, went into cardiac arrest in June and is still recovering while dealing with significant language and memory issues.
Automakers Renault and Nissan on Monday formalized their reboot of a relationship that had grown rocky, culminating in the spectacular fall of top executive Carlos Ghosn, who had led successful turnarounds at both companies before his arrest and daring escape.
New research suggests that cutting fossil fuel emissions by adopting electric vehicles can improve air quality and potentially reduce respiratory problems in communities. But these benefits may not apply to all neighbourhoods in the same way.
Former NFL player Jim Bob Morris is heading to the Super Bowl in Phoenix from Bloomington, Illinois, in a newly refurbished set of wheels. His ride has new paint, new seating and even a new bathroom.
A paramedic is seen outside ambulances parked at the entrance to the emergency department at Richmond General Hospital, in Richmond, B.C., Sunday, Nov. 27, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
