Ontario invests $235M in primary care teams

TORONTO — The Ontario government has announced a $235 million investment to support over 130 new and expanded primary care teams that will connect 300,000 people to primary care this year.

More than 130 primary care teams were selected through a recent call for proposals focused on communities — identified by postal code — with the highest number of residents not connected to primary care, including those on the Health Care Connect waitlist.

Each successful team has established a plan to attach a high proportion of unattached people in their postal codes and demonstrated readiness to achieve significant progress within a year.

“Together we are building a primary care system that is comprehensive, convenient and connected for every single person in Ontario,” said Dr. Jane Philpott (pictured), chair of Ontario’s Primary Care Action Team. “Through the government’s historic investments, we are making meaningful progress in expanding access to care — and this is just the beginning.”

She added, “In communities across Ontario, your primary care team will be your entry to care, where you will have a team of health professionals led by a family doctor or nurse practitioner to provide the care and services you need, when you need them, in a timely way.”

Dr. Philpott and Health Minister Sylvia Jones made the announcement at Flemingdon Health Centre in Toronto, which is receiving more than $4 million annually through this allocation to help attach more than 9,600 people to primary care through the East Toronto Health Partners Ontario Health Team.

Flemingdon Health Centre will focus on stabilizing the most complex patients with the greatest needs, who often struggle to navigate the healthcare system. This model helps increase system capacity across East Toronto and reduces reliance on emergency services by meeting patients’ needs earlier and more effectively in the community.

Through this latest investment, the province is providing primary care teams with $142 million in operational funding over three years to recruit and retain healthcare workers. Funding can be used for non-physician team members such as nurse practitioners, registered practical nurses, physician assistants and pharmacists.

“At Flemingdon Health Centre, we have spent the last ten years building a model of community driven integrated primary health care,” said Jen Quinlan, CEO of Flemingdon Health Centre. “This means prioritizing keeping people well and in the community. For the cost of a single trip to the emergency department, FHC can provide a suite of healthcare services to that same person for an entire year.”

In addition to funding new and expanded primary care teams, the province is investing $300 million to build up to 17 new and expanded community-based primary care teaching clinics in communities with high rates of unattachment to primary care, allowing up to 300,000 more people to be connected to primary care.

The government continues to make progress on connecting everyone on the Health Care Connect waitlist, as of January 1, 2025 (235,000 individuals) to primary care by Spring 2026. To date, the number of individuals remaining on the list has decreased by over 25 per cent.

Ontario also recently passed the Primary Care Act, which establishes primary care as the foundation of Ontario’s healthcare system and sets out six clear objectives for Ontario’s publicly funded primary care system to ensure people know what they can expect when connecting to primary care.

Inter-professional primary care teams connect people to a range of health professionals that work together under one roof, such as registered nurses and registered practical nurses, physiotherapists, social workers, and pharmacists, helping patients to receive more connected and convenient care.

Eligible teams not selected for funding in this round will be encouraged to refine and resubmit their proposals for the next call for proposals, which is expected to launch in September 2025.

In 2024 Ontario invested $110 million in primary care teams across the province, helping to connect 328,000 more people to primary care close to home.

“As Ontario Health works to operationalize the government’s commitment, we work closely with our dedicated health system partners across regions in the primary care sector, identifying patient needs and ensuring that the necessary care delivery networks are in place. Our shared commitment is to ensure that all Ontarians are attached to a primary care provider so that their care needs are met, and that this care is delivered in an effective and integrated way,” said Matthew Anderson, president and CEO, Ontario Health.