Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care – Supplementary Estimates, 2019-20

Ontario Health Insurance Program - vote 1405

The Ontario Health Insurance Program includes key elements of Ontario's health care system: client eligibility and health card policies, physicians' payments for services that are insured under the Health Insurance Act, other practitioners' payments, out-of-province/out-of-country services, Family Health Teams, Aboriginal Health Access Centers, Nurse Practitioner Led Clinics, midwifery services, underserviced areas, northern health travel grants, tele triage services, disease prevention, health quality, drugs, community laboratories, psychiatric patient advocacy and rights advice, assistive devices including home oxygen, and protection/risk management of both provider and subscriber fraudulent activity.

The Ontario Drug Benefit program continues to be reviewed with the objectives of creating an easier-to-understand, more consistent and sustainable program.

Publicly funded health services are available from health professionals in various settings from family doctors' offices to academic health science centres, to hospitals, to Telehealth Ontario and Telephone Health Advisory Service where triage advice and health information are provided. Government-funded services are available to Ontarians who have registered, and who are eligible for the Ontario Health Insurance Plan. The Underserviced Area Program helps rural, remote and northern communities recruit and retain health care professionals, as well as ensure access to health care services in these communities. The Northern Health Travel Grant Program helps defray medical related travel costs northern Ontario residents incur to access medical specialist, or health care facility services unavailable in their local communities.

Health Quality Ontario (HQO) is an agency of the province of Ontario and, is a provincial advisor to the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care on health system quality. HQO works with front-line health care providers and health care organizations, and engages directly with patients and caregivers, to help initiate sustainable changes to the health care system.

Vote summary

Standard account by item and sub-items

Local Health Integration Networks and Related Health Service Providers - vote 1411

The ministry collaborates with 14 Local Health Integration Networks (LHINs) to promote a patient-focused, value driven, integrated and co-ordinated health care system. While the ministry provides strategic direction and guidance, the LHINs are currently responsible for planning, integrating and funding health service providers in their local health systems, delivering and managing home care, and planning primary care. In addition, Health Shared Services Ontario is responsible for providing back office support to the 14 LHINs, including IT, finance, human resources, procurement, and the home care database.

The LHINs exercise their authority under the Local Health System Integration Act, 2006. Additional administrative responsibilities are set out in the Memorandum of Understanding, while operational funding and performance expectations are set out in the Accountability Agreement between each LHIN and the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care. Currently, the LHINs manage services in public, private and specialty psychiatric hospitals, home care/LHIN delivered services (formerly Community Care Access Centres), long-term care homes, community health centres, community support services, community services for persons with acquired brain injury, assisted living services in supportive housing, mental health and addiction agencies.

Child and Youth Mental Health (CYMH) program provides various community-based mental health services to children and youth including suicide prevention and life promotion. It promotes mental health well-being by assisting children and youth who are at risk, or have developed social, emotional and behavioural difficulties.

Vote summary

Standard account by item and sub-items