The BC Ambulance fleet consists of 470 ambulances and 41 support vehicles across the province. Since 2001/2002, BCAS has added 35 ambulances and 13 support vehicles to the service.

The Medical Services Plan (MSP) insures medically required services provided by physicians and supplementary health care practitioners, laboratory services and diagnostic procedures.

BC PharmaCare helps British Columbians with the cost of eligible prescription drugs and designated medical supplies. One of the most comprehensive drug programs in Canada, it provides reasonable access to drug therapy through seven drug plans. The largest is the income-based Fair PharmaCare plan.

Total projected provincial health spending including the Ministry of Health Services, health authorities and health services delivered by other ministries is $15.72 billion this year, up from $9.36 billion in 2001, an increase of 68 per cent.

Health spending is expected to reach $17.51 billion in 2011/12

We will spend over $2.25 billion on home and community care in 08/09 for seniors, up $686 million from 2001, an increase of 44%.

In 2003, the direct costs of diabetes, including hospitalization, MSP and PharmaCare were just over $1 billion. By 2015, that cost could nearly double.

Fully 90 per cent of all new spending in B.C.’s three year fiscal plan is devoted to improving health care.

More than $1.2 billion is spent on mental health and addictions treatment in B.C., an increase of more than 42 percent from 2001.

Since 2001, the number of community mental health beds has increased by 57 per cent, to about 7,776 beds.

The number of community addiction beds has increased more than 150 per cent since 2003, to more than 2,100.

The province’s medical school has doubled the number of undergraduate first-year medical student spaces at UBC from 128 in 2001 to 256.

The Province is also planning a fourth medical program at UBC Okanagan to improve access to health care across the southern Interior. When these undergraduate expansions are complete, the province expects to graduate 288 MDs every year.

The Ministry of Health has worked with the Ministry of Advanced Education to:
Add 4,000 new nursing spaces – double the number since 2001;

Create 24 new nursing education program at public post-secondary institutions in B.C. since 2001 including 13 degree programs and 11 certificate programs;

Produce a record number of nursing graduates, who have received close to 13,000 degrees, diplomas and certificates since 2001.

Provide over $15 million in grants for more than 4,300 nursing students needing financial assistance;

Provide about $1.87 million in B.C. student loan forgiveness for nursing graduates who work in underserved B.C. communities for three years. We’ve awarded this benefit to more than 620 nurses.