Article content

Albertans will soon pay a new fee for health care as the Progressive Conservative government aims to balance the budget by 2017 and end its dependence on volatile energy revenues, Premier Jim Prentice told the province Tuesday night.

Making a $104,000 televised address to Albertans two days before the release of the provincial budget, Prentice warned the government must seek new ways to raise revenue as part of a “10-year plan” to get Alberta’s finances in order.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Prentice says Albertans will pay new health fee as part of fiscal plan Back to video

“This is not just about controlling costs. We also need to get our program expenditures off the energy revenue roller-coaster and make our revenues more secure,” said the premier.

“As one key example, when we present our new budget, we will be asking Albertans to begin to contribute directly to the costs of the health system. This revenue will start small, but it will grow over three years.”

Prentice is widely expected to call an election soon after the budget rollout, despite legislation setting the next provincial vote for 2016.