Moe lays out expectations ahead of federal-provincial health-care meeting

The much-anticipated health-care meeting between Canada’s premiers and the federal government is set to take place on Tuesday.

Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe told reporters at the Regina Airport on Sunday he’s expecting to see a health-care offer from the federal government, with some indication that part of the new funding will go into the Canada Health Transfer and the other part may go into prioritized envelope funding.

“In order to address the challenges that are similar but often different as well across the nation, we are going to need some flexibility across Canada in how we’re going to invest those dollars,” Moe said. “More in the Canada Health Transfer is, I think, ideal from the premiers’ perspective.”

Although the premier doesn’t know the exact dollar amount of what Ottawa is prepared to offer, he would like to see a $28-billion increase in the Canada Health Transfer, which would return the federal government to contributing 35 per cent of Canada’s heath-care funding.

“I’m very much looking forward to the meeting and hopeful that the federal government will come as close to the $28-billion mark (as it can) to ensure that the changes that are being made today in Saskatchewan and other provinces … will then be sustainable into the future,” Moe added.

Moe said he expects there to be ongoing discussions between provinces and Ottawa as to what bilateral deals may look like.

“Our priorities may be slightly different in Saskatchewan than they might be in, let’s say, Newfoundland (and Labrador) or Nova Scotia, and again possibly different than British Columbia’s,” the premier added.

According to Moe, the meeting will only be focusing on the financial aspects of health care.

“We did hear at the finance ministers meeting (last week) that there’s some talk of fiscal prudence by the federal government, which is somewhat new, in fairness, with this federal administration to be starting to talk about fiscal prudence for the first time prior to a health-care meeting with the premiers,” Moe said.

He said if Ottawa’s offer is below the $28 billion premiers are asking for, they’ll consider it a downpayment on future work and future discussions the provinces can have with this administration or maybe a different one.

“I think the expectations the public can have is that the investments being made today in province after province be sustainable well into the future to ensure that we’re not going to take a step back,” Moe said.

The premier says he’s looking to use the additional funding to further advance the government’s surgical wait time initiative, which aims to increase the number of surgeries in Saskatchewan.

He also said the funding would go towards adding 150 addictions treatment beds and help with intake for mental health and addictions treatment set to arrive in Regina and Saskatoon.

“We have publicly funded but privately delivered surgeries that have been happening in Saskatchewan for a while,” Moe said. “We’re going to expand on those numbers, in particular, when it comes to orthopedic surgeries, but we’re also expanding the number of surgeries in the public sector.”

The premier said he wants to increase the number of surgeries to deal with the province’s extended wait list, like in virtually every other province and territory.

“That’s what makes this funding negotiation and the ultimate hope the federal government will step in to be a full funding partner so very important,” Moe added.

As for the schedule, Moe said he’ll have one meeting with the prime minister and numerous meetings with the premiers.