Ontario Connecting 500,000 More People to a Family Doctor and Primary Care Team
Next call for proposals open as part of plan to connect every person in the province to convenient primary care by 2029
“Our government is delivering on our plan to connect everyone in Ontario to primary care, when and where they need it, for years to come,” said Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. “These new and expanded primary care teams bring us one step closer to fulfilling that promise as we continue to make record investments in primary care to protect Ontario’s health-care system.”
Ontario continues to lead the country with unprecedented investments and rapid action to strengthen the health-care system through its plan to add over 300 new primary care teams across the province, connecting two million more people to publicly funded primary care by 2029. In June, the government announced a $235 million investment, which funded over 130 new and expanded primary care teams to connect more than 300,000 to primary care, some of which have already begun accepting new patients.
Communities across Ontario are eligible to apply for funding for this next call for proposals. All Ontario Health Teams have been provided guidance on the appropriate number of proposals to submit based on the number of people not connected to primary care in their communities.
The new and expanded teams will prioritize attaching individuals in their communities to care, including those on the Health Care Connect waitlist. The Health Care Connect waitlist (as of January 1, 2025) has already decreased by more than 98,000 people or over 42 per cent. The government expects to announce the successful teams in spring 2026 and there will be additional opportunities to apply through subsequent rounds of funding.
“Together we are building a primary care system that is truly comprehensive, convenient and connected – one that serves every person in Ontario,” said Dr. Jane Philpott, Chair of Ontario’s Primary Care Action Team. “Thanks to historic investments from the government, we’re making tangible progress in improving access to primary care and attaching every person to a family doctor, nurse practitioner or primary care team.”
Through Your Health: A Plan for Connected and Convenient Care, the Ontario government continues to take bold and decisive action to grow the province’s highly skilled health-care workforce and ensure people and their families have access to high-quality care, closer to home, for generations to come.
Quick Facts
- Interprofessional primary care teams connect people to a range of health professionals that work together under one roof, including family physicians, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, registered practical nurses, physician assistants, physiotherapists, social workers, dieticians, and pharmacists, helping patients to receive more connected and convenient care.
- Ontario’s Primary Care Action Team is drawing on best-in-class models of care to implement its action plan, supported by the government’s investment of more than $2.1 billion to connect approximately two million more people to primary care by 2029, which will achieve the government’s goal of connecting everyone in the province to primary care.
- In 2024, Ontario invested $110 million in primary care teams across the province, helping to connect almost 370,000 more people to primary care close to home.
- Ontario recently passed the Primary Care Act, which establishes primary care as the foundation of Ontario’s health-care 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.
- Since 2018, Ontario has added nearly 20,000 additional physicians to its health-care workforce, including an over 14 per cent increase in family doctors.
- Ontario is taking significant steps to strengthen its health-care workforce by making it easier for U.S.-licensed nurses and board-certified physicians to move to and practise in Ontario. So far this year, nearly 1,400 nurses and more than 260 doctors have already chosen Ontario.
Author: Pete Fisher
Has been a photojournalist for over 30-years and have been honoured to win numerous awards for photography and writing over the years. Best selling author for the book Highway of Heroes - True Patriot Love