Next Steps?

The 1945 proposal had included federal funding for a series of public health grants. Heagerty had included these programs in his initial legislation because he was deeply committed to combining preventive and curative activities to improve Canadians’ health. The federal government was therefore prepared to offer each province a pro-rated amount to provide care for people suffering from tuberculosis, mental illness or venereal disease, or for children who had been disabled or adults who were blind. In recognition of the lack of public health personnel, training grants were provided. And to aid provinces in planning future health insurance programs, a grant for a health survey of existing facilities and personnel was also available.

The federal government continued to be responsible for the health needs of Aboriginal peoples, as shown here. A doctor examines a child with symptoms of tuberculosis in the James Bay district in 1946.
Library and Archives Canada, National Film Board of Canada, PA-161452. Photographer: Bud Glunz.