Needing more care as we age is not the problem. Longer lives are something to celebrate.

The real issue is that provinces knew these population pressures were coming for decades — yet successive provincial governments failed to modernize revenue systems to match rising demand.

There was a clear precedent: Ottawa increased Canada Pension Plan premiums by 68% in the 1990s to secure sufficient retirement income for boomers. Provinces did not take similar steps for medical care.