The Ontario Liberal government has announced its first balanced budget in almost a decade, which promises billions of dollars for health care in province.
Finance Minister Charles Sousa released the 2017 Ontario Budget on Thursday, with an $11.5-billion increase in health care investments promised over the next three years. The new health care dollars will go towards free prescription drug coverage for everyone aged 24 and under, and it will also help reduce wait times as well as improve access to care.
The Liberals are also promising to lower household electricity bills by 25% on average, which is expected to begin this summer. Those cuts were previously announced. The province says it is also committed to holding rate increases over the next four years to inflation.
As part of a ten-year investment, the province is slated to spend around $9-billion for construction of new major hospital projects across the province. One of the projects listed in the budget is the construction of a new hospital in the Windsor region.
Another $250-million will be invested into the expansion of home and community care programs, such as home nursing, personal support and physiotherapy services.
Education will also receive a $6.4-billion boost over the next three years, which will help to pay for the new Ontario Student Assistance Program. The program will allow more than 210,000 students to attend postsecondary education tuition free, starting this fall.
The province's new Career Kick-Start Strategy was also included in this year's budget, which is expected to create 40,000 new work-related opportunities for students and recent graduates. Nearly $190-million over a three-year period will be spent on the project.
The 2017 provincial budget is Ontario's first balanced budget since the Recession in 2008. The Ontario Liberals are promising to maintain a balanced budget for the next two years.
To read the 2017 Ontario Budget in its entirety, click here.