Quebec premier calls on Justin Trudeau to meet on health care: ‘It’s a real problem’
Canada’s premiers have wrapped a second day of conferences in British Columbia, however they didn’t safe a gathering with the federal authorities to talk about provincial well being care wants.
Quebec Premier François Legault known as on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to come back to the desk, as an alternative of sending ministers to talk via the media, he stated.
“We have to have a gathering,” Legault stated. “It’s an actual drawback, it’s a very powerful drawback in Canada; so I don’t perceive why Mr. Trudeau doesn’t need to meet us.”
On Monday, the minister of intergovernmental affairs advised CBC it could be “absurd” to extend federal well being transfers.
Dominic Leblanc added Canada doesn’t count on the cash for use to run up surpluses or ship cheques to individuals on the eve of an election.
“It’s a bit insulting to ship Mr. Leblanc or Mr. Duclos answering our request,” Legault replied.
Leblanc’s remark didn’t sit nicely with the remainder of the premiers both.
“There’s no person right here who’s attempting to scrimp on a healthcare price range and divert it someplace else, that’s not occurring,” stated Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston. “The one factor that’s stopping that progress on that’s the federal authorities’s willingness to take a seat down and discuss to us. That’s all we’re asking.”
Premiers met up in an effort to demand extra money from Canada in well being transfers.
They need a rise from 22 per cent to 35 per cent.
Legault says the province wants extra federal cash to maintain new well being care employees on the job.
“Provinces can’t proceed to pay 78 per cent of well being care bills,” Legault stated.
The premier blamed growing prices in an ageing inhabitants and attempting to maintain up with rising applied sciences.
Again within the spring, Quebec’s well being minister Christian Dubé introduced a plan to overtake Quebec’s well being care system.
Whereas Legault says they’ve sufficient funding to execute the plan, they’ve a problem with sustaining it long run.
“Presently, Quebec has put in place the required gestures for our well being care reform. We’re capable of finance it however there’s a deficit in Quebec,” Legault advised reporters in British Columbia.
“The issue we now have is that Mr. Trudeau has given us non-recurrent cash. We used a portion of that cash to rent new nurses but when we need to pay these nurses very long time, we’d like a companion.”
Legault says sitting down with the prime minister is important to debate these wants and the remainder of the provinces.
