health

Health ministers meet over a looming federal funding cliff

Provinces say targeted money for home care and mental health ends after March 2027 without a renewal.

The Canadian

Health

September 28, 2026

4 min read

An empty hospital corridor with equipment along the wall

Health ministers from across the country arranged an emergency meeting to press Ottawa on funding, saying the system is heading toward what Ontario's health minister called a fiscal cliff.

The concern centres on the federal budget's forecast that some targeted health funding ends after March 2027, alongside slower growth in the Canada Health Transfer after March 2028. The transfer is guaranteed to grow by at least five per cent a year until 2028, and at least three per cent a year after that.

That targeted money was promised to expand access to primary care, shorten surgical backlogs, improve mental health and addiction services, and modernize health records and systems. Provinces argue those commitments cannot be maintained if the funding lapses.

Ministers say they are asking for clarity rather than an immediate increase. The federal budget, expected later this fall, will determine whether the programs built on that money continue past 2027.

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