Thank you for that.
I believe you're not the only one who had conversations, especially, I believe, in the last week, when we were all in our constituencies. I also had the possibility to speak with people who are working in the health care system, knowing that we as a government want to strengthen the public health care system because we want to provide safe, high-quality care that Canadians need.
As you know, in the estimates, we're advancing that commitment. The main estimates, as I mentioned earlier, provide a $4.2-billion increase in the Canada health transfer, and the supplementary estimates (A) provide $2.6 billion for new bilateral agreements with the provinces and territories to address health system needs. The latter will be used for needs like expanding access to family health services, supporting health workers and reducing backlogs. We are also increasing mental health and substance-use support and modernizing health systems.
We know that we need to continue to work with provinces and territories to make sure we deliver concrete results for Canadians. I believe we all know that we need to strengthen our health care system, especially following the postpandemic reality that we're in now. Therefore, that is, I believe, a path forward.