Ontarians staying healthy, saving money

Press Release

Ontario is helping families stay healthy and save money by providing greater access to a variety of health services.
Ontario’s publicly-funded immunization program is helping families save up to $790 per child while providing protection to pre-school aged children against 12 different diseases.
Through their schools, kids also can receive immunizations against hepatitis B and meningococcal disease while girls can be protected against HPV (human papillomavirus), which means further savings of up to $610 per child.
In addition, the “Healthy Smiles” program is helping to ensure good dental health for low-income children and youth up to 18 years old.
Launched in October, the program provides access to preventive and early dental treatment services. It helps low-income families to save hundreds of dollars annually for needed dental care.
The province also is helping people with type 1 diabetes control their disease, and save thousands of dollars by covering the cost of insulin pumps and providing an annual grant of $2,400 for associated supplies.
And due to a series of initiatives that cut prices and the cost of prescriptions, Ontarians now are paying less for generic drugs.
Supporting these programs and services is part of the province’s “Open Ontario” plan to provide more access to health-care services and improve quality and accountability for patients.
“Receiving the health-care services and supplies you need can also be expensive,” noted Health and Long-Term Care minister Deb Matthews.
“Our government knows the importance of making it easier financially for Ontario families to stay healthy—whether it’s covering needed dental care, immunizations for children, or insulin pump costs for people with type 1 diabetes,” she added.
The “Healthy Smiles” program will serve up to 130,000 more children through the province’s local public health units
Four new vaccines have been introduced since 2003, providing protection against invasive pneumococcal disease, meningitis, chickenpox, and cervical cancer.