Just over $2 million is being invested to support critical health care infrastructure upgrades in the Bay of Quinte.
MPP Todd Smith was at Trenton Memorial Hospital today (Thursday) to announce almost $1.9 million in provincial funds to Quinte Health Care through the Health Infrastructure Renewal Fund (HIRF). This is up over $400,000 from last year.
Smith said the current government has worked hard to fix the funding formula which greatly benefits small and medium sized, and multi-site hospitals and the HIRF has increased each of the past three years.
QHC President and CAO Stacey Daub says the funding will go towards repairing the leaking roof and replacing a heating boiler at TMH. At Belleville General Hospital, the money will go towards a new chiller system for the MRI machine.
Daub says there are other projects they have lined up but they are waiting to see what can be done by the end of the year.
The government is providing $1.8 billion in additional investments for hospitals through the 2021 budget, including funding to create more than 3,100 additional hospital beds to increase capacity, with 1,500 of those beds being in the Bay of Quinte region (Bay of Quinte, Hastings – Lennox and Addington and Northumberland – Peterborough South).
There was also over $126,000 announced for Addictions and Mental Health Services – Hastings Prince Edward via the Community Infrastructure Renewal Fund (CIRF).
Interim CAO James Duncan welcomed the announcement.
He said the funding will go towards improving ventilation in two homes while improving accessibility in others.
Ontario has increased the CIRF by three percent this year and is providing $7.6 million for the CIRF.
