Tuesday’s federal budget confirmed an additional $2 billion in health care funds for the provinces. The funding had been promised in last year’s budget, provided that the federal budgetary surplus for 2003-04 was at least $5 billion, including the $3 billion contingency reserve for that year. Prime Minister Paul Martin said the provinces would get the money; in fact, the surplus was $7 billion.

The budget also committed $500 million, credited to 2003-04 expenditures, for strengthening the public health system.

There will be $400 million for the provinces and territories to be drawn down any time over the next three years — $300 million for a national immunization program “that would support the introduction of new and recommended childhood and adolescent vaccines.” And $100 million “to relieve stresses on provincial and territorial public health systems that were identified during the SARS outbreak.”

The other $100 million, also for the provinces and territories, is to invest in software and hardware “with the goal of assessing, developing and implementing a high-quality, real-time public health surveillance system, with a particular focus on infectious disease monitoring, and including the integration of current disease-based surveillance systems.”

There’s also $80 million in 2004-05 and $85 million in 2005-06 to create a new agency whose mandate will include establishing health emergency response teams, enhancing surveillance, establishing regional centers of excellence, expanding laboratory capacity and strengthening international coordination and collaboration.

In addition, there is increased tax relief for disabled persons and caregivers.