Indigenous Health Equity Fund
Funding support for Indigenous-led approaches to quality and culturally safe health services.
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About the fund
Starting in 2024 to 2025, the Indigenous Health Equity Fund will provide $2 billion over 10 years (or $200 million annually) to address the unique challenges Indigenous Peoples face when it comes to fair and equitable access to quality and culturally safe health services.
This funding has 2 components:
- Distinctions-Based Funding: About $190 million a year directed to First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities, providing a long-term, predictable base of funding support for their health priorities.
- Targeted Initiatives: About $10 million a year directed to select Indigenous communities and organizations in support of short-term, innovative, activity-driven projects on cross-cutting Indigenous health priorities.
Distinctions-Based Funding
This funding represents a long-term commitment to supporting Indigenous self-determination in health and provides First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities with the flexibility they need to address their health priorities, whatever they may be.
This funding is intended to support First Nations, Inuit and Métis priorities in health, which may encompass a wide range of specialties, including primary care, health infrastructure, public health and mental wellness.
For more information on what may be eligible, please refer to the eligible expenditures identified within the following program authorities:
- Primary Health Care Authority
- Health Infrastructure Support Authority
- Contributions to Support Service Transfer and Transformation
Some provincially and territorially insured health services (that is, services provided by a medical doctor, or diagnostic testing) cannot be supported through the Indigenous Health Equity Fund. For access to these types of services, First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities are encouraged to contact their respective provincial or territorial government.
Targeted Initiatives
Targeted Initiatives Funding is intended to provide short-term, activity-driven funding for innovative and cross-cutting Indigenous health priorities. This funding, which may range up to $500,000 in a fiscal year, will provide an opportunity for organizations to address singular priorities in health, such as the adoption of new technologies or innovative processes to improve the delivery of health services, or to support a targeted effort to address a specific priority area, such as Indigenous women's health, urban or 2SLGBTQQIA+.
For more information, including eligibility and how to apply, please visit Indigenous Health Equity Fund – Targeted Initiatives.