OTTAWA—On the eve of the throne speech that will set the legislative agenda for the new Liberal government, demands from premiers and an emboldened opposition are raising health care as a pressing concern on the federal stage.

Premiers of all provinces and territories banded together this week to demand more money for health care from Ottawa, even as some cast doubt on the government’s plans to set up a national pharmacare program.

On Wednesday, the federal NDP backed the demand for higher health transfer payments, and the Conservatives said they are open to discussing it in the new minority parliament.

The Bloc Québécois championed larger health transfer payments during a federal election this fall that largely revolved around questions of personal integrity, climate change and affordability.

In Ottawa on Wednesday, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh made clear his party wants to see commitments to increase funding for health care in Thursday’s throne speech. He also urged the Liberals to increase the health transfers to provinces, while also implementing a publicly funded pharmacare program for all Canadians — something the Liberals pledged to explore in talks with the provinces during the election campaign.

“We must increase the transfers. It’s a totally appropriate demand. It’s something that I want to do,” Singh said.

If the government does not commit to doing this in the throne speech, or fails to meet the NDP’s other demands — which include dropping a court challenge of an order to compensate First Nations children and families, and drawing up stronger and more accountable plans to fight climate change — Singh said his party is “very prepared” to vote against the throne speech.

“But our goal in this parliament isn’t to tear down the government. Our goal is to actually find ways to work together to benefit Canadians,” Singh said.

“If the prime minister wants to do things for people, he can count on us. If he doesn’t want to work for people then he's not going to count on our support. He can go to the Bloc or the Conservatives.”

Ahead of the October election, Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer committed to maintain the current, 3-per-cent annual boost of federal health and social transfer payments if elected prime minister. The commitment was laid out in a letter he wrote to provincial and territorial leaders and was meant to blunt any campaign accusations that the Conservatives would cut health care funding.

That pledge was made in recognition that Canada has an aging demographic, said Conservative MP Marilyn Gladu (Sarnia-Lambton), the party’s health critic.

“We have an increase in chronic disease, an increase in dementia and ever increasing costs in drugs so the provinces are struggling and I think there is a role for the federal government,” she said in an interview.

She said her party doesn’t have position yet on the specific demands by the provinces. “We look forward to more discussion on that,” she said.

The Liberals promised during the election campaign to make a $6-billion “down payment” on improved health care. The party explained that the money would be spread over four years and used as a starting point for negotiations with the provinces and territories on the implementation of a national pharmacare program, as well as improved access to family doctors and mental health care.

In an emailed statement Wednesday, Alex Lawrence, a spokesperson for Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, said the government is “open and keen to discuss” a range of issues with provinces and territories, including climate change, fiscal stabilization, health care and infrastructure.

He did not say whether that includes an openness to discuss increased health transfers.

Federal health transfer payments represent the largest pool of money that Ottawa shifts to the provinces and territories every year to ensure comparable social programs are available across the country. In the current fiscal year, Ottawa is set to transfer more than $40 billion in funding for health care, up from about $26 billion a decade ago.

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The current deals, which the Liberal government struck separately with each province and territory during its previous mandate, ensure this health transfer grows by at least 3 per cent per year — and possibly more if annual economic growth is higher than that over a three-year span.

The agreements are good for 10 years, but earlier this week at a gathering in Toronto, the provincial and territorial premiers called for a new deal that would guarantee the annual health transfers increase by at least 5.2 per cent each year, rather than 3 per cent.

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