SASKATOON — Saskatchewan and the federal government have reached a $32-million agreement to support long-term care, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Wednesday during a visit to the province.
“As we recover from this pandemic, we must all continue to work together to improve care for our seniors," Trudeau said at St. Ann’s Senior Citizens’ Village in Saskatoon.
Trudeau said the deal is meant to improve care for seniors. It will be used to increase screening of staff, make dining areas safer and enhance cleaning and housekeeping.
Saskatchewan Seniors Minister Everett Hindley said the funding will off-set costs the province has incurred at care homes throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hindley said the pandemic has been particularly hard on seniors and those in care. The virus continues to spread at care homes. There were 11 new outbreaks in long-term care facilities included in the most recent provincial data for the week of May 8.
"It has been a very challenging two years for all of us," Hindley said.
Saskatchewan is the ninth province or territory to reach an agreement through a federal long-term care fund. British Columbia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Yukon and Northwest Territories have already signed on.
Trudeau said his government is working with the remaining regions to reach a deal.
The fund was established in 2020 as COVID-19 fatally spread through care homes across the country. Saskatchewan was not spared.
Trudeau said the pandemic has forced Canadians to question how we care for seniors and other vulnerable people in society.
He spoke with a number of St. Ann’s residents as others watched from nearby bedroom windows and took out cellphones to snap photos.
Trudeau faced a handful of protesters throughout the day. A few shouted names at the prime minister at the care home. Later, during a visit to the University of Saskatchewan, a boy on a bicycle wearing a People's Party of Canada T-shirt yelled an expletive at Trudeau and gave him the finger.
On Tuesday night, Trudeau cancelled plans to appear in person at a Liberal fundraiser in British Columbia after racial insults and threats were directed at some attendees as they arrived.
While at the university, Trudeau met with staff and students from the agriculture department to discuss farming technology and how it can play a role in Canada's climate change solutions.
He also toured the school's Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization. He thanked the facility and its staff for their work and for being the first in Canada to sequence COVID-19 and advancing vaccines.
He even gave a shout-out to a protester on the campus.
“On behalf of 38 million Canadians — including that guy who doesn’t know it — thank you," said Trudeau.
For his final stop, he visited the Saskatoon Open Door Society and met with parents picking up their kids from daycare.
He also had a private meeting with Saskatoon Mayor Charlie Clark and spoke with two families who fled Ukraine in March following the Russian invasion.
Trudeau told Ganna Karaieva that the "federal government will make sure you don’t just succeed but you contribute to Canada as well.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 25, 2022.
Mickey Djuric, The Canadian Press
