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Longueuil – Exactly nine months ahead of the 2026 provincial election, the APTS (Alliance du personnel professionnel et technique de la santé et des services sociaux) is launching its 2026 Agenda, a special edition of its campaign A strong public system: what if we dared to do it?, which is designed to put strengthening the health and social services system at the heart of public debate. As Québec faces a systemic crisis, fuelled by decades of underfunding, centralization and privatization, the APTS is putting forward a series of concrete solutions that will be unveiled every month through to election day.

“A strong health and social services system is possible if we dare to do it,” said APTS president Robert Comeau. “The solutions are known, credible and necessary. The parties now have to commit to making them political priorities.”

In January: end austerity

The first theme of the campaign — End austerity: what if we dared to do it? — points to an obvious finding: Québec has slipped back into austerity, despite what the government says. With a $14 billion deficit, many observers argue that Québec “can’t afford” to invest more in public services.

And in fact, the government increased the 2025-2026 health and social services budget by only 1.8% ($1.1 billion), when the real needs require at least 5%. The result is a shortfall of around $2 billion, which has direct consequences on the ground:

• System-wide: job cuts and hiring freezes
• Technical medical departments: maintenance delays, more frequent equipment breakdowns, service slowdowns
• Medical imaging: equipment sitting in storage because of a lack of funding to install it
• CLSC and psychosocial services: reduced primary care capacity
• Physical health: consolidation of specialized services in major centres, forcing service users to travel longer distances
• Intellectual disabilities/autism spectrum disorder and mental health: the closure of day centres, reduced work programs, rundown residences with continuous assistance, reduced funding for intermediate resources
• Public health and nutrition: reduced food offerings, real cuts to spending in prevention

“This is the third cycle of austerity since the late 1990s,” said APTS 1st vice-president Émilie Charbonneau. “Each time, it’s like a vise squeezing the public system. Meanwhile, the richest 1% get richer, and privatization keeps gaining ground. We have to break this vicious circle.”

The APTS

The APTS (Alliance du personnel professionnel et technique de la santé et des services sociaux) represents more than 68,000 members who play a key role in ensuring that health and social services institutions run smoothly. Our members provide a wide range of services for all Quebecers, including diagnostic, rehabilitation, nutrition, psychosocial intervention, clinical support, and prevention services.