Health Minister Tom Osborne says Newfoundland and Labrador would see an immediate increase in health care funding — up to 20 per cent overall — from the federal government’s proposal to the provinces yesterday.

Osborne and Premier Andrew Furey will meet with Federal Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos in the near future to get further details on how the new funding would work.

Osborne says he realizes premiers across the country would like to have seen more funding, but he calls the proposal good news, adding priority areas will be outlined in subsequent bilateral agreements.

He also notes other provinces are looking to Newfoundland and Labrador’s Health Accord as they put together their own health care plans.

How the delivery of health care will be outlined in upcoming bilateral agreements remains to be seen, but Osborne says Ottawa has already acknowledged some of the unique geographic and demographic challenges facing this province.

Not surprisingly, Opposition Leader David Brazil sees the federal government’s proposal very differently.

Brazil says he’s very concerned with the new health transfer offer made to premiers yesterday, saying it only provides an additional $46 billion to the provinces and territories over a 10-year period.

He says that increase won’t be sufficient.

Brazil says if it’s just the start of addressing the province’s health care crisis, “then that’s great, and it’s welcome.”

But if there’s no more than that, Brazil fears the country and provinces are going to continue to have real struggles meeting immediate challenges.