There are a number of types of criteria. If it were simply a pro-rated distribution based on population, we wouldn't have the figures we currently have. There's a whole cocktail of factors, including demographics. There are also issues relating to geographic dispersion. A small, widely dispersed community will score points: we realize that there are density problems, as a result of which they have to be given more support. There are factors such as the community's institutional maturity. A community that lives in a province that has a strong institutional apparatus that supports it in the area of health at the provincial and municipal level won't have the same needs as another community that is still at a much earlier stage in its development. We weigh factors. In addition to that, there is a kind of funding history. It's true that the percentages have changed since the start of this decade. There were increases at the end of the 1990s that were not equal for everyone, but, since 2000, increases have been made by adding the same percentage for everyone.
On May 13th, 2008. See this statement in context.