Accord with Ottawa gets $560M more for Sask health care

Saskatchewan has reached an agreement with Ottawa that will send $560 million into the provincial health care system.Monday morning, Mark Holland, Canada's Minister of Health, Everett Hindley, Saskatchewan's Minister of Health, and Tim McLeod, Saskatchewan's Minister of Mental Health and Addictions, Seniors and Rural and Remote Health announced two bilateral agreements to invest a total of more than $560 million in federal funding to improve health care in Saskatchewan.Through the Working Together Agreement, Ottawa will provide $391 million to support a provincial three-year action plan on health care. The money earmarked for the following.Improved access to family health services and acute and urgent care by supporting a Saskatchewan family physician payment model, expanding Saskatoon's Chronic Pain Clinic, growing the Virtual Triage Physician program, and creating new permanent acute care and complex care beds in Regina and Saskatoon.Recruit new health care workers and offer retention incentives for hard to recruit positions, and increase clinical placements to support the expansion of 550 post-secondary training seats.Expand the delivery of "culturally appropriate" mental health and substance use support and specialized care through overdose outreach teams, the continued expansion of police and crisis teams, increasing addiction treatment spaces and rapid grief counselling by Family Services Saskatchewan and supporting youth facing mental health and addiction challenges.Modernize health care systems with health data and digital tools by continuing investments in eHealth and health sector IT.Through the Aging with Dignity agreement, Ottawa will provide $169.3 million to support Saskatchewan's five-year action plan to enable residents to age with dignity close to home, with access to home care or care in a safe long-term care facility.The money will expand community health centres and outreach services and advance the Patient Medical Home Model pilot, supporting training for health workers in end-of-life care and increasing the number of palliative care professionals, increase the number of front line care and continuing care providers, and improving compliance with long-term care standards through inspections and follow-ups.The partners say the agreement will improve how health information is collected, shared, used and reported to streamline foreign credential recognition for internationally educated health professionals and facilitate the mobility of health professionals within Canada."Canadians deserve to get they health care they need, no matter their age or where they live. By working together with the province of Saskatchewan, these agreements will reduce wait times, make it easier to see a doctor, and ensure our seniors can age with dignity. Tailored to Saskatchewan's unique needs, this funding focuses on what matters most: better health care for the people of Saskatchewan," said Holland.Hindley said: "The federal funding commitment will build on provincial investments and help accelerate and expand initiatives already underway to meet the health needs of a growing province, build stronger health teams, and modernize the health system.Budget 2017 committed $11 billion over 10 years in federal funding to provinces and territories to improve access to home and community care, and mental health and addictions services for Canadians. Bilateral agreements were signed with provinces and territories to access the first six years of that funding. The final four years of funding for mental health and addictions are included in the new Working Together bilateral agreements. The federal government is also working with provinces and territories to implement a second bilateral agreement focused on helping Canadians age with dignity close to home, with access to home care or care in a safe long-term care facility. This agreement includes the remaining $2.4 billion ($600 million per year for fiscal years 2023-24 to 2026-27) over four years to improve access to home and community care from Budget 2017; and the $3 billion ($600 million per year for fiscal years 2023-24 to 2027-28) over five years for long-term care from Budget 2021 to apply standards of care in long-term care facilities and help support workforce stability.