Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he is committed to working with the provinces to ease some of the "real pressures" on the Canadian healthcare system, but any new investments must deliver results for Canadians.

Significant gaps in the healthcare system – which many healthcare professionals have classified as a system in crisis – were the focus of a meeting held by premiers in Victoria, British Columbia this week.

The premiers criticized the Prime Minister for pushing for a permanent increase in federal health transfers. They estimate that the federal government is responsible for about 22 percent of the cost of healthcare per Canadian, an amount they want to increase to 35 percent.

Trudeau said, "The federal government will be there, but our focus at every step, and Canadians across the country, in every province, will understand this, is to make sure that the dollars we put in deliver real and tangible results for Canadians, in shorter wait times, in better services, in access to a family doctor, and this is what we have been pushing for, and this is what we continue to talk about with the provinces."

British Columbia Premier John Horgan hosted the premiers' meeting this year, their first in-person gathering since the start of the pandemic.

Horgan said on Tuesday, referring to "Oliver Twist": "It is not about coming with a begging bowl and saying 'please, sir, give us more'."

Trudeau said that previous investments in healthcare by federal and provincial governments have not always delivered the long-term improvements necessary for the system.

"As we come out of this pandemic, we have the opportunity not only to invest more, which we will do, but also to ensure that these investments are felt by families, felt by seniors, and people who need services, and mental health.

He also said, "The federal government will be there to invest in healthcare, but we will make sure that these investments benefit Canadians."

The federal government committed to sending two billion dollars in health increases to the provinces in March. However, as reported by The Canadian Press, funding allocated to reduce the surgical and diagnostic backlogs has not yet been transferred.