Amounting very precisely at 43.8 million, this deficit is part of an operating budget of around two billion.
In recent years, the CIUSSS de l’Estrie-CHUS was almost always heading towards a deficit in the final months of financial years, before seeing the Ministry of Health and Social Services (MSSS) save the day by granting funds non-recurring.
The financial results of the CIUSSS de l’Estrie-CHUS in recent financial years. We see that in 21-22 and 22-23, the granting of significant amounts by the MSSS saved the day, but not this year. (CIUSSS de l’Estrie-CHUS)
“We do not have an amount that has been reimbursed by the Ministry,” explained Thursday evening the director of financial resources of the CIUSSS, Lyne Jutras, to the members of the board of directors.
She also specified that a “series of small adjustments” made by the establishment made it possible to reduce the extent of the deficit, which was anticipated at 63 million in March.
Ms. Jutras did not detail the reasons explaining why the MSSS did not transmit the amounts requested by the CIUSSS. In March, she assured that “[le Ministère] has been warned that the coffers for this year 23-24 are noticeably empty.
In 2022-2023, 17 million was paid at the end of the financial year by the Ministry, while this amount stood at approximately 31 million in 2021-2022.
Youth program ignored
This year, the CIUSSS requested a total of 49.7 million from the Ministry, of which 44.4 million was to be used to finance various parts of the youth program. The remaining amounts were intended to encourage a greater volume of activity in angiography.
The documented overload of the youth program, which notably includes the accommodation component with the Val-du-Lac rehabilitation center, does not only have an impact on the care provided to young people: it is also costly for the CIUSSS de l ‘Estrie-CHUS.
“We have, on the youth side, a lot of overflow in rehabilitation, which means that it adds significant pressure to our budgetary framework,” indicated Lyne Jutras.
“We added accommodation beds on the rehabilitation side, but also for clients with intellectual disabilities, autism spectrum disorders and physical disabilities,” she continued. This is additional pressure, because we have gone beyond the funding we receive from the ministry. There is also the transfer from Montérégie which is added.
In addition to the expenses caused by the addition of services, the situation of the independent workforce (MOI) in the youth program, but also elsewhere at the CIUSSS, has weighed down the establishment.
Lyne Jutras (Frédéric Côté/Archives La Tribune)
In March, Ms. Jutras detailed that a 1,235% increase in the use of agency staff in the Estrie youth program had been observed between 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 in Estrie. For the CIUSSS as a whole, this increase was 214%.
While the average hourly rate of an agency employee is close to $92, this increase means that the CIUSSS will have to pay more than 50 million more than in 2022-2023 for MOI services.
In addition to investments in the youth program, Lyne Jutras noted that significant sums had also been put forward in home care by the establishment.
Regulatory speaking, a CIUSSS cannot run a budget deficit. If such a case were to occur, the establishment must propose a plan to return to budgetary balance, something that the CIUSSS de l’Estrie-CHUS had already committed to doing in March.
