Province expands at-home care program as Fort St. John project remains delayed

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — The Ministry of Health says it is expanding an at-home care program in B.C., as the timeline for a new long-term care home in Fort St. John remains uncertain.

In a news release on Friday, February 20th, the ministry said its Long-term Care at Home program will expand to support about 2,700 seniors across B.C. by 2028. 

The ministry said the program equips older people’s homes with monitoring technology and provides proactive care management and home support services.

“Meeting the needs of a growing and aging population means delivering care in smarter, more flexible ways, including right in seniors’ homes,” said health minister Josie Osborne.

“This innovative expansion will help more seniors remain safely at home, reducing pressure on hospitals while improving health and wellbeing for seniors and their families.”

According to the ministry, the program is currently supporting more than 275 seniors.

The province says expansion is underway in Vancouver Coastal Health, Fraser Health and Island Health, with discussions beginning in Northern Health and Interior Health.

The announcement comes amid ongoing delays to several long-term care infrastructure projects, including the planned facility in Fort St. John.

In the 2026 provincial budget tabled February 17th by finance minister Brenda Bailey, the targeted year of completion for the Fort St. John long-term care home was removed. 

The project had previously been announced as an $155-million facility adjacent to the Fort St. John Hospital, linked to the Peace Villa, with 84 new beds and a 30-space adult day program.

The Ministry of Finance has said delays to seven long-term care projects provincewide are due to “significant and unsustainable costs,” with some builds reaching as high as $1.8 million per bed. 

The decision to delay the projects has received criticism, with Marc Lee, senior economist for the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, saying: “They definitely seemed to manage to p*ss off everybody,” in an article from The Canadian Press.

B.C. Conservative Party finance critic, Peter Milobar, added: “[This] budget is an assault on seniors, working families and the small businesses that drive our economy.”

The government says it is reviewing the long-term care infrastructure program and exploring standardized designs and modular construction to reduce costs.