N.S., Ottawa sign $355-million, three-year bilateral health-care funding agreement

It’s official. 

Nova Scotia Health Minister Michelle Thompson, federal Health Minister Mark Holland and Brian Comer, minister responsible for the provincial Office of Addictions and Mental Health, put pen to paper at the Halifax Infirmary on Wednesday to sign a $355-million, three-year bilateral funding deal with the federal government. 

The funding agreement is part of the federal government’s 10-year, $196-billion health funding deal offered to provinces and territories in 2023. 

Nova Scotia is the fourth province to sign the agreement, following British Columbia, Prince Edward Island and Alberta. 

Thompson said fixing health care is a top priority of the Houston government and has been the biggest share of the provincial budget.

“We are trying new ideas, technologies and approaches,” she said. 

But, Thompson said, in order to see transformative change that will improve the system, long-term sustainable funding was needed.

The signing of the papers means the Nova Scotia government can use the federal government’s funding toward their four shared health-care priorities:

• access to high-quality family health services when people need them, no matter where they live; 
• a resilient and supported health workforce that provides high-quality, effective and safe health-care services; 
• access to timely, equitable and quality mental health, substance use and addictions services; 
• access to electronic health information that is shared between the health professionals patients consult.

Holland said that as a result of the partnership between the two levels of government, Nova Scotians will see expanded access to family health services through enhancing community health centres and supporting those without family doctors through mobile health services and virtual care. The goal is to have 88 per cent of Nova Scotians have regular access to a health-care provider by 2026. 

The provincial government will also: 

• work to increase the number of family physicians, nurse practitioners and registered nurses;
• work to enhance diversity within the workforce, as well as increase recruitment capacity; and 
• work to modernize the province’s health data system.

Darren Fisher, Dartmouth-Cole Harbour MP and parliamentary secretary to the federal minister of mental health and addictions, highlighted that $52.5 million of the funding will be dedicated to mental health and addiction services over the next three years. 

Fisher said there will be an expansion of integrated youth services sites, which provide support for mental health issues, addictions and other needs for those aged 12-25. There are currently eight sites (two in each health zone) across the province. 

“What’s great about these sites is that they provide wraparound support for youth, not only health and social services, but also compassion support and community,” Fisher said. 

Comer said the funding will also result in the addition of two mental health acute day hospitals. There are currently two in Nova Scotia: at the Abbie J. Lane Memorial Building in Halifax and the Cape Breton Regional Hospital in Sydney. 

Thompson said there will be more details released on how the money will be spent as the provincial government goes through the budget process.