The Government of Ontario has pledged to spend $1.75 billion to build and renovate long-term care homes across the province over the next five years.

On July 15, Premier Doug Ford announced a redesigned funding model for long-term care homes that would get more homes built faster. He also indicated that the province had updated design standards for care homes to include air conditioning in any new and renovated facility.

"Our new funding model will not only encourage new beds to be built faster, but also upgrade existing older homes to meet high quality design standards, with features like air conditioning and private or semi-private rooms," said the Premier.

Speaking at Queen’s Park, the Premier said the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted a number of weaknesses in the province’s long-term care system—among them a shortage in available beds.

“The last few months have made it crystal clear that when it comes to long-term care, we can’t accept the status quo,” he said. “What we need is significant investment in the long-term care sector,” he said. “We need to tear down and redevelop old homes and we need to build new ones. We need thousands of new long-term care beds, and we need them fast.”

The new funding would create 8,000 new beds in the system, and renovate 12,000. That combined figure of 20,000 beds is a far cry from the 30,000 beds the Ford government promised to fund with the same funding envelope in 2018.

The new funding model will do a number of things to accelerate construction and renovation of facilities.

It will provide development grants of between 10 and 17 percent as incentives to builders to get shovels in the ground. The grant money can be used to cover upfront costs like development charges, land and other construction expenses.

It will increase funding to incentivize the construction of basic accommodation and continuing top-ups for small and medium sized homes.

It will also create four new regional categories of homes based on their geographic locations: large urban, urban, mid-size and rural. Increases to the province's construction funding subsidy will be tailored to each category, enabling the government to address the barriers and needs of different communities.

“We are pleased that the Ontario Government’s new approach is more sensitive to the different needs of Ontario’s rural and urban communities, and the local solutions they require,” said Donna Duncan, CEO of the Ontario Long Term Care Association. “The increased level of capital funding will help a number of operators who were not able to previously secure financing to rebuild their homes.”

By taking these steps, the government says it is making it more attractive for operators to build long-term care homes and bring aging homes with three- and four-person ward rooms up to modern design standards.

Finding care for seniors is a big issue in Ontario. Currently, more than 38,000 people are on the waitlist to access a long-term care space, and new long-term care home construction has not kept pace. The previous funding model has not spurred development nor accounted for how regional differences impact land, construction and other development costs.

Between 2011 and 2018, there were just 611 long-term care beds built across the province. The province expects its new funding model to change that. It is also making its new funding formula available to projects that date back to 2018.

The government will also change long-term care regulations and design standards to ensure that all new builds and redevelopments are mandated to have air conditioning.

"This newly designed model is a signature element of our government's plan to address capacity in long-term care," said Long-Term Care Minister Merrilee Fullerton. "This bold new plan will allow us to modernize a system that had been neglected for years, reduce the waiting list and ensure seniors live in a setting that is modern, clean and comfortable."