The Ontario government is investing $35 million to help long-term care homes across the province support residents with complex needs.
The Local Priorities Fund supports initiatives that connect people with the right care for them, reducing unnecessary emergency department visits and hospital stays. The investment is part of the government’s plan to protect Ontario by ensuring long-term care residents get the quality of care and quality of life they need and deserve.
“Our government is protecting our long-term care system by investing in the specialized equipment and staffing needed to address complex conditions,” said Natalia Kusendova-Bashta, Minister of Long-Term Care. “Providing consistent, multi-year funding to the Local Priorities Fund will ensure long-term care homes across the province have access to the tools they need to provide the care that residents deserve.”
Kusendova-Bashta made the announcement in Scarborough at the Midland Gardens Community long-term care home, which received $67,000 in funding through the program in 2025-26 to purchase diagnostic and specialized equipment, such as a vital signs machine, to help reduce emergency department visits.
Originally launched in 2022, the Local Priorities Fund invests in staffing, equipment and services to support people’s transitions from hospitals to long-term care homes, meet the needs of residents with complex conditions, and prevent unnecessary hospitalizations. Last year, the fund supported 1,168 projects at 394 long-term care homes and service providers across the province.
Since its launch in 2022, the fund has invested in more than 3,700 projects across Ontario. It is administered by Ontario Health, an agency of the Ministry of Health. More than 60 per cent of long-term care residents have a dementia diagnosis.
As part of its plan to fix long-term care and address waitlists, the government says it is building 58,000 new and upgraded long-term care beds across the province.
