“The government is proposing to introduce and expand tax credits, but the budget doesn’t act on Premier Doug Ford’s 2018 election campaign promise to cut income taxes by 20 per cent. Instead, the Low-income Individuals and Families Tax (LIFT) credit is being expanded to support residents making an annual income up to $50,000. Eligibility was previously capped at $38,500. This is expected to cost $320-million a year and support an additional 700,000 people, with an average tax savings of $430. Also being proposed is a new tax credit to help seniors 70 and older pay for medical expenses. Under the new Ontario Seniors Care at Home Tax Credit, eligible recipients would receive up to 25 per cent of their medical expenses for a maximum credit of $1,500.”

“OMA president Dr. Adam Kassam, for his part, noted that the budget is the last one before the June 2 provincial election and is time for the government to outline how it is going to deal with a backlog of care created during the pandemic. It should also explain how it plans to fix cracks in the health care system that deepened in the past two years, he said. Kassam said the OMA estimates there is a backlog of 21 million health-care services — including hip or knee replacements, cataract surgeries, X-rays, colonoscopies, ultrasounds and access to primary mental health-care services. […] But spending more money is not all that’s needed, he warned. ‘The province also needs health human resources — more doctors, personal support workers and other health-care professionals at a time when many are retiring or leaving the profession because of burnout exacerbated by working on the front lines of the pandemic.’”

“The pandemic has taken its toll and highlighted the need for more staff on the health care front lines. This is why Ontario is investing $342 million to strengthen the nursing workforce by adding over 5,000 new and upskilled registered nurses and registered practical nurses as well as 8,000 personal support workers to critical areas of the health care system through a variety of programs.”

“Stabilizing Funding: the government is annualizing the investment made in the 2019 Ontario Economic Outlook and Fiscal Review”

“‘The signing of these two bilateral agreements is an important milestone in ensuring Ontario’s health care system has long-term stable funding,’ said [Deputy Premier and Minister of Health and Long-Term Care Minister Christine] Elliott.”