Investment of $1,890,400 in Carefirst Family Health Team brings the province one step closer to connecting everyone in Ontario to primary care by 2029.
NEWS July 30, 2025
RICHMOND HILL — As part of its $2.1 billion Primary Care Action Plan to connect everyone in Ontario to a publicly funded family doctor or primary care team, the Ontario Government is investing $1,890,400 this year to connect up to 5575 people to primary care in Richmond Hill. This investment is part of the government’s Primary Care Action Plan that will help connect 300,000 people to primary care this year.
Carefirst Family Health Team will establish a process to accept new patients and will communicate this to their local community. Carefirst Family Health Team is committed to delivering exceptional, comprehensive primary care through a collaborative, team-based model that includes family physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, social workers, dieticians, physiotherapists, and medical receptionists. Carefirst Family Health Team has a robust Chronic Disease Management and Prevention program, including a Diabetes Education Program, and are actively involved in many of the Ontario Health Team’s primary care initiatives. Their strong community partnerships ensure coordinated, high-quality, patient centred care across the continuum.
“This investment of over $1.8 million will make a real difference for families here in Richmond Hill,” said MPP Daisy Wai. “By adding and expanding local primary care teams, more residents who’ve been waiting will finally be able to see a family doctor or nurse practitioner, right here at home. It’s about making sure everyone in Richmond Hill has the care they need, when they need it, and building a stronger, healthier community for all.”
“Every Ontarian deserves to have access to the care they need, when and where they need it. That is why our government is taking action to deliver on that objective through the Primary Care Action Plan,” said Michael Parsa, MPP for Aurora-Oak Ridges-Richmond Hill. “By supporting over 130 new and expanded primary care teams, we are connecting 300,000 more individuals to primary care this year, which improves access, strengthens our healthcare system, and builds toward a healthier Ontario for everyone.”
The Carefirst Family Health Team was funded through a recent call for proposals focused on communities—identified by postal code—with the highest number of residents not connected to primary care, including those on the Health Care Connect waitlist. Each successful team has established a plan to attach a high proportion of unattached people in their postal codes and demonstrated readiness to achieve significant progress within a year.
“As a longstanding provider of primary care in Richmond Hill, Carefirst Family Health Team is deeply honoured and grateful for this investment,” said Tamara Belfer, Executive Director of Carefirst Family Health Team. “With decades of experience serving the community and as a proud partner within the Western York Region Ontario Health Team, we are excited to expand our reach and attach 5,000 more patients to comprehensive, team-based primary care. This funding recognizes the vital role of collaborative primary care in building a stronger, healthier Ontario.”
This investment is part of the more than $2.1 billion the Ontario government is investing to support the Primary Care Action Plan that will add over 300 new primary care teams across the province. This includes $235 million in 2025-26 that in part is supporting over 130 new and expanded primary care teams across the province.
“We are continuing to build on our government’s record investments, which have helped secure Ontario the highest rate of access to a regular health-care provider in the country,” said Sylvia Jones, Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. “We are protecting Ontario’s health-care system and people’s access to convenient care by funding new and expanded primary care teams across the province, helping connect everyone in Ontario to a primary care provider.”
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.
QUICK FACTS
- Interprofessional primary care teams connect people to a range of health professionals that work together under one roof, including registered and registered practical nurses, physiotherapists, social workers, and pharmacists, helping patients to receive more connected and convenient care.
- Eligible teams not selected for funding in this round will be encouraged to refine and resubmit their proposals for the next call for proposals, which is expected to launch in September 2025.
- Ontario’s Primary Care Action Team, led by Dr. Jane Philpott, will implement its action plan supported by the government’s historic investment of more than $2.1 billion to connect approximately two million more people to a family physician or primary care team by 2029, which will achieve the government’s goal of connecting everyone in the province to primary care.
- The Ontario Government recently passed the Primary Care Act, 2025., which establishes primary care as the foundation of Ontario’s health-care system and sets out six clear objectives for Ontario’s publicly funded primary care system to ensure people know what they can expect when connecting to primary care.
In 2024, Ontario invested $110 million in primary care teams across the province, helping to connect 328,000 more people to primary care close to home.