Summer 2024 is shaping up to be even busier than usual as the federal government moves ahead in implementing the federal research system reorganization outlined in Budget 2024.
As part of our post-budget engagement with government, HealthCareCAN continues to connect with federal representatives to learn more about the government’s implementation plans and influence their approach. Building on our meetings with Health Canada and Finance Canada, in early July HealthCareCAN met with the Office of the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry as well as senior officials at Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) Canada.
Our interventions have offered an opportunity to shape the government’s next steps and highlight the key priorities of our member organizations. This includes the need to maintain the vital connection between health research and the broader health portfolio, and the importance of involving health researchers working in the health system in the new capstone organization and Council on Science and Innovation.
In mid-June, the federal government launched a one-month consultation to gather feedback on the capstone research funding organization. HealthCareCAN, with the input of the Vice Presidents of Health Research (VPR) Committee, prepared a submission to the consultation that we are delighted to share with you. The VPR Committee also met with CIHR for a 90-minute consultation session in June where members had the chance to provide feedback on the capstone organization and federal research system reorganization.
Another significant priority for our members related to the reorganization of the federal research system is the need to outline a pan-Canadian vision for research and innovation. Following extensive engagement with our VPRs, including a subcommittee that convened to develop the document, HealthCareCAN is pleased to share our vision for health research and innovation in Canada. This vision will support our government advocacy moving forward and will be shared with federal decision-makers.
While the federal government is focused on advancing the research commitments outlined in Budget 2024, there are several other open consultations on issues important to our members to which HealthCareCAN is providing input. We are working on finalizing our submission to the Standing Committee on Finance’s annual pre-budget consultation, due in early August.
HealthCareCAN is also engaging with members to prepare a submission to the federal government’s consultation on the Budget 2024 AI commitments, including the development of a Canadian AI Sovereign Compute Strategy and AI Compute Access Fund.
As our work continues over the summer and into what will no doubt be a lively fall, HealthCareCAN is ensuring that issues crucial to our member organizations are understood by decision-makers in Ottawa.
HealthCareCAN continues to welcome input regarding various federal budget issues from member institutions. If you have input or questions concerning this – or other government relations work – please contact the HealthCareCAN team at govtrelationsgouv@healthcarecan.ca and/or Jonathan Mitchell, Vice-President, Research and Policy, at jmitchell@healthcarecan.ca.
— Your HealthCareCAN Team
