$1,532,500 investment brings the province one step closer to connecting everyone in Ontarioto primary care by 2029
NEWS – June 17, 2026
For Immediate Release
ANGUS, ON — This afternoon, Brian Saunderson, MPP for Simcoe-Grey announced that the Ontario government is taking the next steps to deliver its Primary Care Action Plan, which is on track to connect everyone in the province to a family doctor or primary care provider by 2029.
As part of this plan to connect everyone in Ontario to a publicly funded family doctor or primary care team, the Ontario government is investing more than $1.5 million this year to connect up to 4,699 people to primary care in Simcoe-Grey.
“Access to primary care is one of the most important health-care priorities for residents across Simcoe-Grey,” said MPP Saunderson. “This investment will help more residents in Essa Township and across Simcoe-Grey connect to the care they need, when they need it, while supporting the Barrie Community Health Centre’s efforts to expand services into a growing region. It is an important step toward ensuring more people can access primary care close to home.”
The Barrie Community Health Centre provides integrated primary health care, health promotion, and disease prevention services through a team-based model of care. As a community-governed, non-profit organization, the centre supports individuals and families in improving their health and well-being while offering programs that strengthen community health. With this funding, the Barrie Community Health Centre will establish a process to accept new patients from Angus and area.
The Barrie Community Health Centre was funded through the latest call for proposals under the Primary Care Action Plan, with all 124 teams receiving funding expected to connect another 500,000 patients to primary care across Ontario. Each team has established a plan to attach a high proportion of unattached people in their community, including those on the Health Care Connect waitlist.
Through the 2026 Budget, the province is also increasing overall funding for the plan to a total of $3.4 billion between 2025 and 2029.
“Through our Primary Care Action Plan, we are connecting more people to care and have already exceeded our 2025-26 attachment target,” said Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. “By connecting more families to care in Simcoe-Grey, our government is taking the next step toward connecting everyone in the province to primary care by 2029.”
Through Your Health: A Plan for Connected and Convenient Care, the Ontario government continues to take bold and decisive action to grow the province’s highly skilled health-care workforce and ensure people and their families have access to high-quality care, closer to home, for generations to come.
QUOTES
This funding marks and important step forward in ensuring that everyone in the community of Angus will be connected to a primary care provider so they can receive the care they need, when they need it. We are grateful to our primary care practitioners for their continued dedication and to our partners at the Barrie and Area Ontario Health Team and the Primary Care Network for their leadership and support in advancing this proposal. We also thank Ontario Health and the Government of Ontario for their ongoing investment in primary care.
~ Christine Colcy, Chief Executive Officer, Barrie Community Health Centre
Thank you MPP Brian Saunderson and the Provincial Government for investing in and recognizing that access to quality health care is essential to a thriving Community.
Bringing more health care services local improves early detection and prevention.
Local health services also promote equity-ensuring vulnerable and underserved residents receive culturally competent care close to home.
We look forward to the success with the very much needed Community Health Centre in Angus, Essa Township.
~ Sandie Macdonald, Mayor, Essa Township
The province has also exceeded its 2025-2026 attachment goal under the Primary Care Action Plan, which was to connect 300,000 patients to a primary care provider by March 31, 2026. As of January 1, 2026, the province has already attached 330,000 people to care in 2025-2026, surpassing its goal by more than 30,000 with three months still to go.
QUICK FACTS
- Ontario’s Primary Care Action Team is drawing on best-in-class models of care to implement its action plan, supported by the government’s investment of more than $3.4 billion to connect approximately two million more people to primary care by 2029, which will achieve the government’s goal of connecting everyone in the province to primary care.
- The government is making significant progress on its goal of clearing the Health Care Connect waitlist as of January 1, 2025. That waitlist has been reduced by more than 87 per cent as the plan continues to hit its targets and deliver faster access to high-quality care.
- Ontarians looking to find a family doctor or nurse practitioner can register with Health Care Connect or call 811.
- Interprofessional primary care teams connect people to a range of health professionals that work together under one roof, including family physicians, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, registered practical nurses, physician assistants, physiotherapists, social workers, dieticians and pharmacists, helping patients to receive more connected and convenient care.
- Since 2018, Ontario has added nearly 20,000 additional physicians to its health-care workforce, including an over 14 per cent increase in family doctors.