Premiers to get a ‘generous offer’ on health care

OTTAWA — Sources within the federal government indicate they will be making a significant offer on health-care transfers Tuesday, but it will come with strings and won’t provide all the money premiers have been asking for.

Provincial premiers are set to get the longawaited offer on health care spending this afternoon in a meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

The prime minister announced the meeting last month and described it as a “working meeting,” and said they would not be signing final deals.

Provincial premiers have been asking for this meeting for over two years and have consistently demanded the government increase the transfer to a level where Ottawa would be funding 35 per cent of the healthcare system.

An increase of that size would require the government to increase spending by $28 billion a year this year, and continue to add more money thereafter.

The sources, who spoke on background because they’re not authorized to speak publicly, said Ottawa is coming to the table with a significant amount of money.

“It’s a generous offer,” they said.

They did confirm it is not the $28-billion figure that provinces have been asking for, but said they hoped premiers would see it as a serious commitment and be prepared to negotiate. The deal Trudeau will offer premiers would be for 10 years and require provinces to share health-care data with Ottawa.

It would also insist that provinces spend the new money on health care and not reduce their own health-care budgets as the new money comes in.

When the health-care talks were announced in January, Manitoba Premier Heather Stefanson, the current chair of the Council of the Federation said they’re still expecting the Trudeau government to hit that 35 per cent target.