Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty wants to create an "innovation fund" separate from federal health-care transfers to save money and improve services.
He'll be taking that idea to his provincial and territorial counterparts when they meet in Victoria, B.C. for three days starting Sunday. The federal government's new health plan that ties transfer payments to the economy will likely dominate the talks.
One aspect of the plan would allow seniors to stay in their homes longer and avoid expensive institutional care, McGuinty told CTV's Question Period.
"I think that if we have that kind of fund in place, we could draw on that. And then, just as importantly, I think we should be held accountable for measureable results," he said.
Asked if the federal government should kick in money for such a fund, he said, "I would argue that the federal government has a greater responsibility when it comes to the future of medicare than to merely passively preside over its evolution."
Finance Minister Jim Flaherty surprised premiers when he announced the proposal in December, which guarantees a six per cent increase in health-care funding until 2016-17 and after that transfers would be on a per capita basis and tied to the economy. It comes with no policy strings and essentially takes Ottawa out of the health-care equation.
The announcement received mixed reviews with provinces like Alberta and British Columbia supporting the autonomy, while others like Quebec and Nova Scotia arguing Ottawa is putting rising costs on the backs of the provinces.
The plan would also eliminate the need for health-care accords between Ottawa and the provinces.
B.C. Premier Christy Clark, also appearing on CTV's Question Period Sunday, said the provinces have been asking for that autonomy for 30 years.
"The federal government has now said that they want to get out of the business of telling provinces what to do in delivering health care and making health care policy," Clark said, adding she believes most premiers support that aspect.
Asked if she's worried about less money flowing from Ottawa and forcing deep health-care cuts, Clark said there's only one taxpayer and the provinces need to watch how they use the cash.
"Starting this weekend, we need to be talking about all the innovations that we can bring to the system . . . that means we can spend money better and get better care," she said.
Parliament's budget watchdog concluded last week the funding formula will gradually reduce Ottawa's support for medicare, but put the federal government on solid financial footing while leaving provinces with rising debts.
Both the head of the Canadian Medical Association and a leading federal-provincial relations expert say Ottawa's lack of leadership on the health care file is not the end of the world, and in fact hands the premiers a chance to show some initiative.
"It's about leadership," said CMA president John Haggie in an interview. "Now is the time to kind of step up."
The provinces don't absolutely need the federal government to be involved, said Mendelsohn.
He pointed to the development of specialized clinics, changes in the way doctors are compensated, efforts to deal electronically with health care in remote areas and reorganize the way patients access their primary health care providers.
--with files from The Canadian Press
