Ontario boosts health spending, phases out COVID-19 supports in fall economic statement

The Ontario government released its fall economic statement today boosting health spending, investing more into roads and bridges and phasing out COVID-19 support.

It projects a deficit this fiscal year of $21.5 billion, which is $11.6 billion lower than previously estimated. This is largely due to higher-than-expected tax revenues and stronger economic growth. 

The province is putting an additional $549 million over three years into home and community care. It is also committing $342 million to add and upgrade the skills of around 5,000 registered nurses and registered practical nurses and 8,000 personal support workers. 

There is $342 million to hire more nurses and personal support workers and $12.4 million over two years on mental health supports for health workers.

The province is also committing $548.5 million to help patients recover at home and support people with complex health conditions. Also, $57.6 million over three years will go to hiring more nurse practitioners in long-term care, $72.3 million over three years to hire more inspectors and $22 million on technology to share information between hospitals and long-term care.

Commitments are being made to build Highway 413 from Vaughan to Milton and the Bradford Bypass north of the GTA. The government has not said how much the roads will cost. It is also allocating $2.6 billion for this year to expand and repair highways and bridges. The plan projects no new spending for building schools or hospitals. 

The province put $10.7 billion toward Ontario’s COVID-19 time-limited funding this year, including school supports. It is now set to drop that to $3.4 billion next year and end the support by 2023-2024.

There are no tax cuts in the document. The province is introducing a “staycation” tax credit and enhancing or extending several existing tax credits, including the Ontario’s Seniors’ Home Safety tax credit. 

The “staycation” tax credit will allow people who take trips anywhere in Ontario in 2022 to be able to claim up to 20 per cent of the cost of a trip, up to $1,000 for an individual or $2,000 for a family. 

School boards are getting $78 million more to support COVID-19 measures and learning catch-up in schools, but the base funding for education is down from what was pledged in the 2021 budget by $360 million. 

There is a $10 million commitment to help First Nations conduct surveys for unmarked graves around former residential schools and obtain death registration records. 

Premier Doug Ford suggested he might cut the high price of gasoline earlier this week, but gas tax revenues are down $629 million from what was projected in March 2021 because many workers did not commute at all during the pandemic.