The provincial government has announced a new 10-year action plan aimed at improving the care cancer patients across B.C. receive.
Premier David Eby was joined by health minister Adrian Dix in Vancouver Friday morning where he announced an initial investment of $440 million that will go towards delivering improved care for British Columbians suffering from cancer.
The B.C. government is pledging a number of upgrades as a result of the new plan, namely:
- An expansion in cancer-care teams
- Increased service hours offered by health-care professionals
- A revised pay structure to attract oncologist and cancer-care professionals
- Improved cancer screening programs
- Funding for cancer research
- Expanded indigenous patient support positions
- Funding for patient travel from rural communities
According to the action plan, the funding builds upon a $1-billion investment into cancer prevention and treatment that the province has seen since 2017.
The $440-million announcement touted Friday is one part of a three-year plan.
From 2024 through to 2026, three more $90-million investments are slated to be injected into the province’s healthcare system, as well as a one-time fund of $170-million for the BC Cancer Foundation.
A slide from the provinces new action plan aimed at improving cancer treatment for residents across the province.
“Nearly every British Columbian has been affected by cancer in some way, through their own diagnosis or that of a family member or friend,” said the premier in the press release.
One-in-two British Columbians will experience a cancer diagnosis in their lifetime, according to government statistics. As the province’s aging population increases, so do its cancer rates.
In 2021, more than 30,000 people in B.C. were newly diagnosed with cancer and over 11,000 died because of cancer.
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Roger Collins
