Ontario’s finance minister is expressing concerns about the rate of health-care spending in the province, calling the current $91.5-billion budget both “unprecedented” and “unsustainable.”
When Peter Bethlenfalvy addressed the Mississauga Board of Trade in January, he outlined some of the issues that appear to be weighing on his mind as he crafts the upcoming budget set to be delivered in late March.
“We’re in unprecedented territory in terms of the concerns of people. People are scared, they’re worried, they are concerned,” Bethlenfalvy said of the current geopolitical and economic climate fuelled, in part, by U.S. President Donald Trump.
At the same time, Bethlenfalvy warned that the province was facing a “big headwind, on top of the uncertainty” that threatens to squeeze Ontario even further.
“The economic environment is slowing down, there’s just no question,” the minister said. “We’re growing at the slowest rate we’ve grown post-COVID.”
Adding to the GDP concerns, the finance minister pointed out that “flattening” population growth is another factor his department is closely watching as it decides how to allocate billions in spending.
“Eighty-five per cent of the spending in the budget is actually for social spending. About 15 per cent is for infrastructure and the economy,” Bethlenfalvy explained.
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“We have a slowing population and a slowing economic growth and a trajectory of social spending that’s been, frankly, unprecedented. So we’re going to have to manage that challenge.”
Later, during a fireside chat, the minister put it more clearly: “Our health-care spending is unsustainable. We just have to deal with reality that we can’t keep spending, particularly when our population is flattening.”
The comments come at a time when hospitals warned the government they are facing a billion-dollar structural deficit and are now preparing for “difficult decisions” unless the Ford government increases health-care funding in its upcoming budget.
The Ontario Hospital Association said health-care costs have risen by six per cent a year, largely due to a growing and aging population and inflation, forcing health-care institutions to erode their capital and borrow money to stay afloat.
Rob Cerjanec, a Liberal MPP from Ajax, said the finance minister’s comments are “incredibly concerning,” especially for residents who want assurances that health care will be available when needed.
“When we hear a minister of finance talking about health-care spending being unsustainable, I mean that could be the difference between life or death for somebody,” Cerjanec said.
“We have great pride in our public health-care system. We need to strengthen our public health-care system.”
Recently, Ontario’s financial accountability officer revealed that the province was projecting a “significantly slower pace” of health-care spending in the next few years compared with the previous three.
The 2025 budget projected that health-care spending would grow by an average rate of 0.7 per cent between 2025 and 2028.
By contrast, the health-care budget grew by 6.6 per cent on average between 2021 and 2024.
“Over the 34-year period from 1990-91 to 2023-24, health sector spending grew at an average annual rate of 5.0 per cent,” the budget watchdog notes. “If the Province’s health sector spending plan in the 2025 budget is achieved, it would be the slowest three-year growth rate since 1993-94 to 1996-97.”
When Global News asked the finance minister whether his “unsustainable” remark meant he was considering cutting spending, Bethlenfalvy rejected the notion.
“We’re not going to cut health-care spending,” the finance minister said, before adding that his goal is to deliver health spending in an “efficient, effective and innovative way.”
Bethlenfalvy said that includes focusing on reducing surgical wait times, easing hallway health care and expanding access to family doctors.
The minister added that the use of artificial intelligence to help physicians take notes and using tracking devices on gurneys and wheelchairs are examples of innovation to free up resources and stretch precious health-care dollars.
You can blame the baby boomers that neglected their health for years and living high on the hog and now have plenty of health issues and you can also blame people coming over from other countries tries flooding the hospitals or the fact our health care is very inadequate
62 million for arrive can – an app that should have cost 100 thousand max, 10 billion for stellantus to walk off with, countless billions for foreign wars – but we can’t fund health care for Canadians (Ontario is better off than most provinces)
Listen to CBC White Coat Black Art on healthcare in Sweden and Norway for proven methods.
Last time I was in the hospital there was someone from another country who had been in Canada for only 2 years & was getting dialysis which he needs every 3 days for the rest of his life. When I asked what he did, he’s a financial advisor.
Why do import people with no real usable skills, but with long-term, serious medical problems no wonder the system is suffering?
He was tying up two medical staff to do that.
Neither is the severe shortage of doctors.
Socialism is a good thing look at countries all over Europe
Fix it
So fix it
Of course. Starve the system he doesn’t believe in in the first place so he can privatize more. How’s Dougie’s pet tunnel?
Healthcare , a socialistic idea where many do not look after themselves.
MAYBE stop paying for unnecessary highways for Doug and cover healthcare – Healthcare is important for all Ontario residents.
There is no such thing as free “health care”. You’re paying through your taxes and if you’re lucky enough to be working at a company who has benefits, then your paying twice, to get good coverage. So how much are you paying yearly ??. And what are your options for a better plan or price?
And why would he care when he can afford private healthcare for his family!!
Stop free health care to all non Canadian citizens problem solved.
And the rate of healthcare privatization is doing what now?
Unsustainable is the cost of our politicians to Canadians. That is unsustainable.
Oh wow. Just figuring this out now? Take control of the OHIP billings that is a free for all. As one of many examples, eye specialist are able to bill for the exact same test the optometrist did a week earlier. It is like an assembly line at these eye specialist. Manage the fraud in the system.
Plus so many in the government sector are constantly getting raises on top of their abhorrent ridiculous pays
Perhaps we brought in more people then our country could sustain comfortably. Wonder who is at fault for that.? How to rectify that? Hmmm
Trudeau immigration has destroyed everything. Only immigrants will disagree.
Its like they forgot covid was a thing.
There is a very easy solution, cut the politicians at the root levels, no councillors, or city level politicians. Let bureaucrats do the job
Cut 75% of politicians at provincial level and cut 50% politicians at federal levels , and there income to be taxable as any other citizen and no pension for them , and 65 years of age as retirement, let youngsters come and do the job . The world will be a better place to live
If any goverment practices fiscal sensibilty and practical spending, there will be a surplus always to spare. Avoid 101 feasibilty studies, avoid 201 salary increases and bonuses, avoid 301 union give ins, and avoid 401 tunnels.
Will V, you need to stop drinking the right wing conservative kool-aid. Many of those immigrants are here on work visas, meaning they contribute taxes, which go into the healthcare budget. Perhaps of corrupt Doug and his inept cabinet stopped overpaying private doctors and nurses, stopped lining pockets of their cronies, taxed the wealthy appropriately, etc, healthcare spending would not be an issue. This stinks of their ploy to privatise healthcare and enrich more cronies.
Just like Minnesota, our system is being pillaged by immigrants,pharmacies,care offices,professionals growing by leaps and bounds, all capable of billing the system without oversight.
Crazy, it’s almost like paying private nurses/doctors way more than the public ones, means you overspend and understaff.
Yet people continue to vote in an inept PC government, year after year.
Time to fire Doug Ford and his corrupt government!
Ask all immigrants to pay $100 per medical visit and $100 per day in the hospital upon entering Canada and until they are Canadian Citizens. Ask all people who can afford it, to pay $25.00 per medical visit and per day in the hospital.
Of course when you add on the additional cost of profit on Healthcare while privatizing it. Shareholders are quite happy with thieving PC government.
How about the rate of how much their salaries raise every year that’s unsustainable
No..the rate of little to no taxes collected from multi millionaires and billionaires is unsustainable so we pions can have quality health care.
Kathy H thinks our elders in LTC don’t deserve preventative care. How would a dr know if an elder needs medical care without at least asking them? Does Kathy think all Ontarians should be prevented from speaking to a dr unless she authorizes it or is it just elders? Drs charge what OHIP determines and it isn’t much per consultation. Look it up.
Neil things people aren’t “paying into the system” and that they are the problem with health care. Who are these people, Neil? How do you know that they aren’t paying any provincial taxes? Using your rationale, people paying more tax should get better, preferential treatment. Are you sucking up to anyone, Neil?
So get ready for more cuts. This government hasn’t fixed any of the problems it said it would fix and cutting is always the failed answer. They are incompetent.
Amen J. Bangay.
Perhaps consider stopping the huge financial commitments to the Parking at the Spa, and the ridiculous 401 ideas. Doug Ford’s ideas that favour his friends and spending our tax money on things that benefit few. Reinvest in healthcare!
Bob the blind. It’s a fact!
Maybe if they stopped privatizing it they could fund it properly
I think that Paul has more than one point..
Unsustainable?? Are you kidding me?
The government cancelled an ANNUAL revenue of $1B dollars (ANNUAL) via a drivers licence fee that all drivers paid … a fee that no one was complaining about … in order for the PCs to buy election votes (as they cancelled that huge revenue generator just prior to the previous election).
Let’s not forget…
One example of waste is having a doctor visit healthy people in retirement homes on a regular basis. Doc spends a minute or two (sometimes while people are in the dining room eating a meal) and who knows what they charge.
Perhaps the minister should acknowledge the whote elephant in the room: people “fresh off the (asylum) boat” demanding health carw and operations while threatening “Are you racist?” with every delay. Lets face the truth here. Some, and i mean SOME, do not come here to contribute to our society. And it’s us taxpayer Canadians who have to pay for it, sometimes with our own health.
Cut off the use of AIs in medical field.
So I guess Ford is setting up to privatize all health care in Ontario.
There is enough fat in the bureaucracy (anyone not a front line service provider) in the health care system to cut the budget by 25% and not affect services. If you don’t believe that, look closely where the money is being spent and how much the bureaucracy has grown the last 20 years vs how much front line service providers have grown. It’s ridiculous.
I think emergency services are used as opd service in brampton civic hospital
Took about all of 3 comments before immigrants were scapegoated.
Perhaps the Ford provincial government should cancel the free licence plate sticker renewal for drivers. That would bring in about $1.1billion per year in lost revenue for the provincial coffers. Seems that Doug Ford only cares about gas, car drivers, and alcohol perks for Ontarions.
The addition of so many people who are not paying into the system(illegals) is an issue not mentioned.
Really? Healthcare is the only thing we need out of our tax dollars. All those other things politicians do are wants.
healthcare should be for citizens not PRs, unless they are a net contributor for many years
If you want to reduce the costs then stop offering free healthcare to immigrants. Canadian healthcare is for Canadians. Not newcomers.
How about the Ontario government stop funnelling money into these private healthcenters and focus on the public ones. It is a no brainer really. The Ford government was to gaslight Ontarions into believing that they are going above and beyond when in all reality they are goong above and beyond for your developer buddies.
Quit paying for the illegal and migrants Duh problem solved
Cut back on the handouts to your friends then. Healthcare benefits all Ontarians
Spend Health Care funds on non privatized health care, as per HEALTH CANADA. STOP spending it on your pet projects!!!!
Maybe it’s time to start looking after us naturalized Canadians here and less on new comers. When we travel to foreign lands they sure don’t give us any free medical help. Immigrants should stop these expectations from us.
This is just setting the stage for more privatization. This government is all for enrichment of its donors. Squeeze the 99% and line the pockets of the 1%.
Seems like we need a transparent disclosure of Ontario’s finances. The province has the lowest per capita spending on healthcare and the highest GDP. Ontarians deserve a truthful accounting of our tax dollar spending and debt.
Unsustainable, yet our province spends the least per person on Healthcare…
So it begs the question 🤔……..why & who decided it would be ” helpful ” to overload our system with 1 million foreign dependents ? How incompetent and truthfully criminally negligent as far as im concerned. Gather up and retract all refugee & immigration over the past 12 yrs . Start from there , trust this will improve the balances, this will improve Canadians insurance costs aswell . Then you can begin to properly plan .