Lakeshore, ON — The Ontario government is taking the next steps to deliver its Primary Care Action Plan, which is on track to connect everyone in the province to a family doctor or primary care provider by 2029.
As part of this plan to connect everyone in Ontario to a publicly funded family doctor or primary care team, the Ontario government is investing more than $1,421,400 this year to connect up to 4,022 people to primary care in Essex County.
“4000 more people in Essex County will have primary care thanks to the investments made by our government. That brings the grand total to 6000 more people in Essex County since our government launched our Primary Care Action Plan. Our plan is working. As your MPP, I’m very happy to keep bringing important healthcare investments to people in Essex County,” said Anthony Leardi, MPP or the riding of Essex.
The Lakeshore Community Nurse Practitioner-Led Clinic, Amherstburg Family Health Team, and Harrow Health Centre Family Health Team will use this funding to collaboratively expand access to primary care across Essex County. The partnership will establish a process to accept new patients and will communicate this to their local community. Residents who are not currently attached to a nurse practitioner or family physician can enroll directly with the one of the three clinics. Amherstburg Family Health Team and Harrow Health Centre Family Health team are currently enrolling patients and Lakeshore Community Nurse Practitioner-Led Clinic will begin shortly with updates being posted on the clinic’s website.
“We are grateful to the government for this investment, which will help our clinics expand access to team-based primary care for residents across Essex County. This funding allows us to advance health equity by better supporting underserved communities and connecting more people to the care they need, closer to home. Together, our organizations look forward to continuing our collaboration to build a healthier community for everyone, said Amy Serran, Executive Director – NP, Lakeshore Community Nurse Practitioner-Led Clinic.
The partnership of health teams was funded through the latest call for proposals under the Primary Care Action Plan, with all 124 teams receiving funding expected to connect another 500,000 patients to primary care across Ontario. Each team has established a plan to attach a high proportion of unattached people in their community, including those on the Health Care Connect waitlist.
Through the 2026 Budget, the province is also increasing overall funding for the plan to a total of $3.4 billion between 2025 and 2029.
The province has also exceeded its 2025-2026 attachment goal under the Primary Care Action Plan, which was to connect 300,000 patients to a primary care provider by March 31, 2026. As of January 1, 2026, the province has already attached 330,000 people to care in 2025-2026, surpassing its goal by more than 30,000 with three months still to go.
“Through our Primary Care Action Plan, we are connecting more people to care and have already exceeded our 2025-26 attachment target,” said Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. “By connecting more families to care in Essex County, our government is taking the next step toward connecting everyone in the province to primary care by 2029.”
Through Your Health: A Plan for Connected and Convenient Care, the Ontario government continues to take bold and decisive action to grow the province’s highly skilled health-care workforce and ensure people and their families have access to high-quality care, closer to home, for generations to come.
Press Contact:
Armand Anderson – Office of MPP Anthony Leardi
+1 519 736 1550
Armand.anderson@pc.ola.org
