The Hospital funding Question

Haltom Hills Council has been asked to participate in the funding of an expanded Emergency room and a CT scanner at Georgetown hospital. The total cost of this project is 12 million dollars. The Town is being asked to provide 4.54 million.
The biggest question is “Why are out tax dollars being used to fund a hospital? Should it not be Provincial money?”

To me the answer to that one is yes, it should be, however, the Province now requires that for any new hospital construction that there is a Municipal share. It is Provincial policy that we contribute.
I have always had difficulty and am philosophically opposed to us having to fund hospitals. Our budgets get stretched as it is!
For each tax dollar raised in Canada the Federal government gets 50 cents, the Provincial gets 42 cents and the Municipalities get 8 cents. Divided up among the Region and Town for all services we deliver.
Health care in Canada is under the Canada Health Care Act and paid for by the Federal government and the Province. But it is up to the Province to deliver the service.
Hospitals are meant to provide a “regional" type service. If I get sick and go to the local hospital I may be transferred to one in another community that may have the expertise or staff that can assist me. They do not turn me away because I live out of Town. Instead the staff treats me, make me well and send me home.
That is how it is supposed to work.
If there is funding out of a tax base it should be looked at as a Region. I plan to pursue that one a bit more. Though it is unl;ikely as we had a report the last term that left it at the local level.
However, I support funding our Georgetown Hospital. Here is why.
Seven years ago we fought like hell to keep our hospital from losing obstetrics and starting the slow long painful road to closing. We face the same thing today. If we go the route of trying to get funding for the CT scanner and expansion, it could be 7 to 10 years. In the mean time our hospital will fall farther behind in equipment, then staff.
Doctors and Nurses will stop coming to Georgetown as we do not have the equipment available for them to diagnose. People will stop using it as they know for a simple procedure of standard equipment like the CT scan; it can mean a 6 hour trip to Milton or Oakville.
We, as a community stood up and said how important our hospital is. Not just to our health and well being, but also as a tool for attracting businesses to locate here.
In the last week I, as have other members of Council received numerous comments, emails and questions on the funding of the hospital. The vast majority are in favour. Some are opposed to it on principal, some on reasons that do not follow the course of normal logic.
But we as Civic leaders must do our duty and find out what the cost will be. We also must listen to each side and make sure that we understand the reasons for those opposed.
We also need to make sure that if we do this that safe guards are in place for the money put in by the Town.
However we also have to recognize the value the hospital has, how it is up to all of us to support it and make sure it is “healthy.”
Because if we do not, it will surely wither and slowly die.

Budgets and catching up.

Well Folks I have not fallen off the face of the earth or had writers block.. Once a new Council gets sworn in we start the work immediately, new committees, some orientation sessions and workshops.
One of the first things we do is budgets. Everyone around the table is concerned and aware of the tough economic times we live in. How people are still struggling. But the other thing that happens is people still expect services and programming from the Town and Region.
For every tax dollar collected in Canada the municipalities receive the smallest part. Fifty percent goes to the federal government, forty two percent to the Province and just eight cents to be split among the Region and the Town. We do pretty good for what we actually get.
The municipal level of government delivers a variety of services that people depend on. From when you turn on your lights, water or go to leave your laneway you are impacted by it.
This year has been difficult as at the Town we are facing a variety of pressure. The Arena Task Force is proposing we build 3 new arenas in the next 4 years. We have the library about to go under construction. Then there are other recreational needs like parks, soccer fields and trails. The cycling Master Plan could potentially cost 15 million by the time it is finished and this year we are adding in money for construction on 2 of our major projects.
The preceding paragraph has over 50 million in projects. Staggering, I know. That was just the Town. Halton Region is facing budget challenges but they have been softened by uploading of Provincial items off the property tax base. However even when those items are uploaded there is still inequities in the budget. Items the province is supposed to cost share equally, never work out that way. Each time they do it costs the taxpayers in Halton. This is for items like Ambulance, public health and social assistance.
The budget for Health and Social Services is 235 million plus. About 95 million is what is charged to the tax base.
Social Service costs have gone up due to the economic downturn but we are hopeful they will start to be reduced. Social Services including housing employ about 1,000 people at the region. In both Health and Social Services al lot of our programs are legislated. We have to do them.
The good news is that both Winston Churchill and Steels are due for long needed upgrades.
We also have a request from the Hospital for funding that is about 4.5 million.
Raising taxes is never easy. But our constituents can rest assured we do not do it likely.
We spend a lot of time reading and preparing for budgets. I have always believed a Councillor should contribute, put forward ideas and vote. The easiest thing would be to vote against everything and not say a word. However I was elected to try and build a better, community, Town and Region. I will continue to be part of the budget process and will work with my colleagues on our vision of our home.

I also promise I will endeavour to write more...