Federal funding for mental health, substance use and home and community-based care services in Manitoba has been extended by one year. However, the province’s health minister did not confirm whether any of it will support services for post-secondary students.
Provincial and territorial health ministers met in Winnipeg on Oct. 15 and were joined by the Federal Health Minister Marjorie Michel the next day. The one-year extension, as discussed at the meetings, may delay a shortfall for Manitoba’s health care system, but it leaves a bigger question open — what happens when the year is over?
Uzoma Asagwara, Manitoba’s minister of health, seniors and long-term care, told reporters at The Leaf on Oct. 15 that the extension falls short.
“We acknowledge that we did receive confirmation yesterday evening from Minister Michel that there would be a one-year extension on two of the agreements. We think that that is an important first step,” Asagwara said. “However, it is a first step.”
According to Asagwara, ministers from the provinces and territories agreed “that [they] cannot accept the reality that [they] are facing, what would be the greatest cut to healthcare in a generation if the federal government does not ensure that the bilateral agreements are continued in full long term.”
The ministers want stable, predictable federal dollars and a Canada Health Transfer that grows by “a minimum of five per cent or greater moving forward.”
“I would argue [that] we’re still dealing with a fiscal cliff,” Asagwara stated.
Minister Asagwara also took issue with the federal letter announcing the extension. “The letter was silent […] on the remaining bilateral, the letter was silent on the Canada Health Transfer, and didn’t outline a plan in terms of how quickly we can get back to talking about this and negotiating.”
Bernadette Smith, Manitoba’s minister of housing, addictions and homelessness, warned that local programs are at risk.
“This would affect, essentially, in Manitoba, over 30 programs,” Smith stated. “This would affect people’s jobs, and most certainly, it would affect people.”
She called for funds the province can plan around. “We need flexible, we need sustainable and we need to ensure that when we are doing our budgeting, that we can budget out five years from now, 10 years from now.”
At the Oct. 16 federal-provincial-territorial meeting, which Asagwara co-chaired, Michel explained why Ottawa offered only one year. With the federal budget cycle moved to the fall, she described the $1.2 billion as “bridging funding” to carry provinces and territories to the next round of negotiations on the Canada Health Transfer and other expiring agreements.
Pressed on whether Ottawa would rule out cuts to provincial health funding, the federal minister did not commit.
“The work is starting today,” she explained. “I will be able to tell you more, but not today.”
The extended agreements now run until March 31, 2027, and ministers plan to meet again before the end of this year.
“We will absolutely keep the pressure on,” Asagwara said.
Asked on Oct. 15 whether any of the money would reach post-secondary institutions, Asagwara first suggested “folks from their own jurisdictions can talk about where post-secondary institutions may have been involved.” Then Asagwara pointed to work across government departments.
“That includes advanced education and training. And so, one of the bilateral agreements speaks specifically to training, right? Hiring people to work in community,” said Asagwara. The MLA and minister included that Manitoba is “training more healthcare workers right now, today, than we ever have before,” including home-care support workers, healthcare aides and nurses. “We have to build on that with our post-secondary institutions.”
That answer centred on preparing the next generation of healthcare workers. There has not been confirmation that any of the money would pay for campus health clinics, counselling or other services students use while completing their degrees.
For now, the extension buys time. What comes after it, and who benefits, continues to be negotiated.
