The Government of Canada’s top priority remains protecting Canadians’ health and safety, particularly during this third, aggressive wave of the virus and its variants.

“This budget is about finishing the fight against COVID. Finishing the fight means buying vaccines, supporting provincial and territorial health care systems, enforcing quarantine rules at the border and within the country, and providing Canadians and Canadian businesses with the support they need to get through these tough, third-wave lockdowns, and to come roaring back when the economy fully reopens.”

The Honourable Chrystia Freeland, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance

• With the arrival of the third wave of the virus prior to Budget 2021, the federal government announced an emergency top up of $5 billion for province and territories, specifically $4 billion through the Canada Health Transfer to help provinces and territories address immediate health care system pressures and $1 billion to support vaccine rollout campaigns across the country.

• Key proposed measures to support the health of Canadians and finish the fight against COVID-19 include:

  • Providing $41.3 million over six years, and $7.7 million ongoing, starting in 2021-22, for Statistics Canada to improve data infrastructure and data collection on supportive care, primary care, and pharmaceuticals.
  • Providing $90 million over three years, starting in 2021-22, to Employment and Social Development Canada to launch the Age Well at Home initiative. Age Well at Home would assist community-based organizations in providing practical support that helps low-income and otherwise vulnerable seniors age in place, such as matching seniors with volunteers who can help with meal preparations, home maintenance, daily errands, yard work, and transportation. This initiative would also support regional and national projects that help expand services that have already demonstrated results in helping seniors stay in their homes. For example, knowledge hubs can help seniors access the local services available to them or provide information, resources, and training to community-based organizations delivering practical supports to seniors.
  • Providing $45 million over two years, starting in 2021-22, to Health Canada, the Public Health Agency of Canada, and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research to help develop national mental health service standards, in collaboration with provinces and territories, health organizations, and key stakeholders.
  • Providing $100 million over three years, starting in 2021-22, to the Public Health Agency of Canada to support projects for innovative mental health interventions for populations disproportionately impacted by COVID 19, including health care workers, front-line workers, youth, seniors, Indigenous people, and racialized and Black Canadians.
  • Providing $50 million over two years, starting in 2021-22, to Health Canada to support a trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) stream of mental health programming for populations at high risk of experiencing COVID-19 trauma and those exposed to various trauma brought about by COVID-19.
  • Providing a total $2.2 billion over seven years towards growing a vibrant domestic life sciences sector. This support would provide foundational investments to help build Canada’s talent pipeline and research systems, and support the growth of Canadian life sciences firms, including:
    • $500 million over four years, starting in 2021-22, for the Canada Foundation for Innovation to support the bio-science capital and infrastructure needs of post-secondary institutions and research hospitals.
    • $250 million over four years, starting in 2021-22, for the federal research granting councils to create a new tri-council biomedical research fund.
    • $92 million over four years, starting in 2021-22, for adMare to support company creation, scale up, and training activities in the life sciences sector.
    • $59.2 million over three years, starting in 2021-22, for the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization to support the development of its vaccine candidates and expand its facility in Saskatoon.
    • $45 million over three years, starting in 2022-23, to the Stem Cell Network to support stem cell and regenerative medicine research.
  • Providing $28.6 million over five years, beginning in 2021-22, with $5.7 million per year ongoing, to the Public Health Agency of Canada, Health Canada, and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, to help address antimicrobial resistance. Investments would support efforts to prevent the inappropriate use of antimicrobials and expand efforts to monitor the emergence of antimicrobial resistance in Canada.
  • Providing $20 million over five years, to the Canadian Institutes of Health Research to support a new National Institute for Women’s Health Research that will import women’s care and health outcomes.
  • Providing $45 million over three years to fund community-based organizations that help make sexual and reproductive health care information and services more accessible for vulnerable populations. 

Related products

• Budget 2021: A Recovery Plan for Jobs, Growth, and Resilience
• Budget 2021: Address by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance

Associated links

• Fall Economic Statement 2020: Supporting Canadians and Fighting COVID-19
• Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Plan
• Young Canadians
• A Canada-wide Early Learning and Child Care Plan
• Supporting Women
• Low-wage Workers
• Support for Small Business
• Job Creation
• Building an Innovation Economy of the Future
• Strong Indigenous Communities
• Supporting Tourism, Hospitality, Arts and Culture
• Housing

Media may contact:

Katherine Cuplinskas
Press Secretary
Deputy Prime Minister's Office
Katherine.Cuplinskas@dpmo-cvpm.gc.ca

Media Relations
Department of Finance Canada
fin.media-media.fin@canada.ca
613-369-4000

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