Report on the Health and Social Services Priorities of English-speaking Communities in Quebec

2022, by James Carter and Joanne Pocock. –

In the upcoming months, the federal government will announce the renewal of the Action Plan for Official Languages for the period 2023-2028. It will affirm Canada’s commitment to promote linguistic duality and the vitality of official language minority communities including Quebec’s English-speaking communities. As part of the federal commitment, Health Canada will be invited to develop a new Official Languages Health Contribution Program to improve access to health and social services for English-speaking communities in Quebec, and French-speaking communities in the rest of Canada.

The collaboration developed between the CHSSN and the Quebec Ministry of Health and Social Services (MSSS) since the first Health Canada Contribution Program in 2003, has established a solid framework for integration of the federal investments into English-speaking communities and the public health and social services system. A key to this framework is an implementation agreement between the CHSSN and the MSSS. The agreement ensures that measures enhance Quebec’s legislative provisions with respect to the right to services in English, and are carried out in a manner consistent with Quebec’s responsibility to plan, organize and deliver health and social services.

It is expected this year the Government of Canada will announce its intention to launch a new Official Languages plan for 2023-2028. The CHSSN and its community partners are issuing this report to prepare for consultations. The report provides an updated portrait of English-speaking communities and their vulnerable populations, community perspectives on access to services in English, and measures to support access and improve health outcomes in English-speaking communities.