Alberta revamping health-care grants to 'activity-based' hospital funding system

Alberta's government will soon tie public hospital funding to the number and type of procedures performed, a move critics warn won't improve the public system and will only accelerate private delivery.

Premier Danielle Smith says the new ``activity-based'' model, expected to be implemented for some surgeries in 2026, will drive costs down by fostering competition among public and private providers who will be rewarded for delivering better results. Smith says it will make the system more efficient, lower wait times, provide more transparency and attract more surgeons to the province. Alberta NDP Opposition health critic Sarah Hoffman says the publicly funded health-care system needs to be efficient, but it shouldn't be forced to sacrifice quality based on turning patients over quickly. Hoffman says the new model is about shifting more funding, and profits, to private surgical providers.

The Health Sciences Association of Alberta, a union representing health-care workers, says the model will create incentives for private companies to cherry-pick low-complexity surgeries that maximize profits and could leave Alberta's hospitals under-resourced and understaffed.