Premier Kathleen Wynne says it’s “very worrisome” that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government will not transfer as much money as provinces need to keep up with mounting health-care costs.

“I feel disappointed and I’m apprehensive because I don’t know what comes next. I hope that we can at some point get to a conversation that’s based on evidence,” Wynne told the Star Tuesday.

Wynne’s comments came after all of the provinces and territories except for New Brunswick rejected Ottawa’s proposal for a new health-funding agreement.

Even though federal Finance Minister Bill Morneau had pledged an additional $11 billion over 10 years toward mental health and home-care services — plus another $544 million for initiatives on prescription drugs and health innovation — the offer fell far short of what the provinces wanted.

Morneau said he was also “disappointed” because the federal Liberals had hoped to reach a deal to improve health services as they promised in the October 2015 election.

“We know provinces do want to find ways to improve their fiscal situation. The provinces were seeking more money,” he said Monday.

The negotiations fell apart over federal health-transfer payments that had been rising by 6 per cent a year since 2005, but are to drop in April to 3 per cent annually or the rate of economic growth, whichever is higher.

Wynne said it is important to remember the federal increases apply only to the 23 per cent of health care that Ottawa funds — provincial governments cover the remaining 77 per cent of costs.

The federal government has proposed a yearly increase to its share of 3.5 per cent — below the 5.2 per cent sought by the provinces. Over the next decade that’s $30 billion less than the premiers say they need.

Morneau’s change is the equivalent of the federal contribution to health care dropping from 23 per cent to 20 per cent.

“I think they feel constrained and I understand that, but we feel constrained, too, and we don’t have the same capacity that they do,” Wynne said, referring to the federal government.

The premier added she hopes the differences can be cleared up at a first ministers’ meeting with Trudeau some time in the new year and stressed she and her provincial counterparts can accept strings-attached funding.

“There’s this notion that somehow we don’t want to be accountable and that we won’t use the money to transform the system. We know we have to transform the system. We understand that and we’ve demonstrated that we can,” she said.

“There’s no possibility that we will not spend more money on home care and mental health. It’s just not possible. So to suggest that somehow we wouldn’t be accountable for those dollars that might be targeted in that way is just not reality.”

Wynne actively campaigned for Trudeau last year — some of her key aides have moved to the capital to work for the prime minister — and the health dispute is her first spat with the 14-month-old government.

“It’s been a really good working relationship . . . so I don’t hold any resentment about that,” she said.

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“This is a relationship. There will be ups and downs and we’re having a difficult discussion right now, but it doesn’t mean the relationship is broken, it just means we’re having a challenging conversation.”

Asked about New Brunswick’s willingness to cut a separate bilateral deal with the federal government, Wynne simply said: “It’s just much more helpful if we can have a common and shared message.”

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