In the lead up to the Budget, the government crowed that they had heard the public and would improve funding for hospitals. However, based on government announcements, they actually plan to lower the hospital funding increase this year. They state they will increase hospital funding $518 million, a 3% increase. But, on closer inspection, the funding increase announced for last year was significantly higher. In the 2016 Budget, Ontario announced that it would increase hospital funding $345 million -- about a 2% increase. Subsequently, the government announced another $140.3 million for hospital funding in the Fall Economic Statement – bringing the total increase to $485 million. That is, of course, already quite close to the much ballyhooed hospital funding increase of $518 million for 2017/18. But it looks very much like the actual hospital funding increase in 2016/17 was higher than $485 million – higher in fact than the $518 million increase announced for 2017
Notes from Leftwords -- Doug Allan