Health unit faces funding shortfall and job cuts

The Sudbury and District Health faces a funding shortfall of $562,645 that could grow to more than $750,000 by 2017 without decisive action, says its medical officer of health.

“I am regretful to announce that we will be losing staff – both through attrition and layoffs. We are doing our utmost to find efficiencies and continue to protect important public health programs and services,” Dr. Penny Sutcliffe, the health unit's medical officer of health, said in a press release.

The health unit's board approved a 2016 budget Thursday that includes “significant reductions in both staffing and operational areas.”

The 2016 budget includes a 0.55 per cent reduction over the 2015 budget, which the board approved due to the introduction of a new public health funding model that has frozen budgets for all but eight of Ontario's 36 health units over the coming years.

Under the new model, the province takes several factors into consideration – including population and geography – to determine how the total pie of provincial health spending should be shared across the 36 health units.

Most health units receive around 75 per cent of their funding from the province, and 25 per cent from their respective municipalities.

Through the new model the province determined that eight health units – primarily in urban areas around the Greater Toronto Area with high population growth – would continue to receive a two-per-cent funding increase per year.

“The new funding model, combined with very minimal or no predicted growth in the provincial public health funding envelope has resulted in a significant financial impact on the health unit for 2016—and these impacts will likely persist well into the future,” said René Lapierre, Board of Health chair, in a press release.

“While we are acutely aware of the government’s fiscal challenges, we are also aware that successful health system transformation requires a well-resourced and innovative public health system. We intend to work with government and provincial associations to ensure continued investment in the work of public health to protect us and keep us healthy.”

The health unit could not say by deadline how many staff will lose their jobs due to the funding shortfall.