Call for proposals for Interprofessional Primary Care Teams

Call for proposals

The Ontario government has launched its first call for applications, to create and expand 80 new primary care teams to connect 300,000 more people to primary care in 2025/26. This is part of the more than $1.8 billion the Ontario government is investing to support Ontario’s Primary Care Action Team and their action plan to add 305 new primary care teams across the province, connecting two million more people to a publicly funded primary care within four years.

Round 1 is a targeted call for proposals focused on communities, designated by postal code, who have the highest rate of people not connected to a primary care provider or team, including those on the Health Care Connect waitlist.

Primary care practices and clinicians who provide care to people living in identified postal codes are invited to submit proposals for funding consideration through their associated Ontario Health Team (OHT) and their Primary Care Network (PCN).

Eligible OHTs are in receipt of the proposal form.

Primary care practices and clinicians interested in applying are encouraged to contact their local OHT and their PCN as soon as possible to identify potential opportunities for collaboration, strategic alignment, and strengthening of their proposals. Each OHT can submit one proposal per identified postal code, with a maximum of 5 proposals per OHT.

We will only assess proposals for Round 1 funding that will provide care to people living in the identified postal codes and are coordinated and submitted by their OHT and PCN.

Who is eligible to apply

Primary care practices and clinicians working with their Ontario Health Team (OHT) can submit a proposal to create or expand one of the existing team-based models:

• Family Health Teams
• Community Health Centres
• Nurse Practitioner-Led Clinics
• Indigenous Primary Health Care Organizations

How to submit a proposal

OHTs and their PCNs will submit proposals for new and expanded Interprofessional Primary Care Teams. Only proposals that will provide care to people living in the identified postal codes and are coordinated and submitted by OHTs will be eligible and assessed for Round 1 funding.

OHTs in identified postal codes are in receipt of the proposal form and submission instructions.

Primary care practices and clinicians interested in applying are encouraged to contact their local OHT and their Primary Care Network (PCN) as soon as possible. Each OHT can submit one proposal per identified postal code, with a maximum of 5 proposals per OHT.

Indigenous-led proposals

The Ministry of Health and Ontario Health will continue to work through this call for proposals to ensure primary care planning and delivery addresses the physical, spiritual, emotional, and mental wellbeing of First Nations, Inuit, Métis, and urban Indigenous people.

While proponents of Indigenous-led proposals are encouraged to collaborate with their local OHTs, OHT and PCN support is not required to submit an Indigenous-led proposal.

Criteria for successful proposals

Applicants will be evaluated and assessed using the following three strategic priorities:

Primary care attachment

Prioritizing net new ongoing attachment of people within identified postal codes who do not have a regular primary care clinician, including those on the Health Care Connect waitlist. The evaluation will give priority  to proposals with a plan to attach the highest possible proportion of unattached people in their postal codes.

Readiness to implement

Demonstrating the ability to be operational and beginning to attach people to a primary care by summer 2025. This can include demonstrating that your proposed new or expanded team can leverage infrastructure, human resources and local partnerships to quickly meet the communities’ attachment needs.

Meeting primary care team principles

The ability to meet the following primary care principles over time:

• Province-wide: Working towards attaching 100% of people within their postal codes, either independently or in collaboration with other primary care practices, to a family physician, physician group, or a primary care nurse practitioner. This includes attaching people on the Health Care Connect waitlist.
• Connected: Deliver interdisciplinary, team-based primary care with other professionals who work together to their full scope to deliver comprehensive primary care services and support the wellbeing of the health care team. Collaborate with local OHTs and their PCNs to establish partnerships with primary care organizations, as well as health, community, and social services to enable the integrated planning and delivery of primary care.
• Convenient: Ensure timely access to primary care, including through the availability of in-person and virtual care options and the provision of after-hours services.
• Digitally Integrated: Ensure that both patients and clinicians have access to digital tools and services, as they become available, that enable easy navigation of the primary care system.
• Equitable: Deliver culturally and linguistically responsive and safe care that meets the needs of the local population, including underserved communities.
• Responsive: Willingness to measure and use primary care metrics, including patient experience and outcome measures, for continuous quality improvement.

Deadline to submit

The deadline for your OHT and PCN to submit proposals is May 2, 2025, at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time.

When we will notify you

We anticipate notifying prospective interprofessional primary care teams of funding decisions in summer 2025.

Additional rounds of funding

This is a multi-year process of funding and there will be additional opportunities to apply for funding. Round 2 of proposal intake and assessment is anticipated to launch in September 2025.

Contact information

If you are unsure about your OHT or PCN contact or have questions, please contact your Ontario Health Region.

Ontario Health Region email contacts

• Toronto: OHTorontoIPC@ontariohealth.ca
• East: OH_East_IPC_EOI_Submissions@ontariohealth.ca
• West: OH-West-PCEOI@ontariohealth.ca
• Central: OH-Central_PrimaryCareAdvancement@ontariohealth.ca  
• North East: OH-NE-Finance@ontariohealth.ca
• North West: OH-NW-Submissions@ontariohealth.ca

If you are unsure of your region in the chart below, the Census Subdivision to Ontario Health Look Up Tool may help.

Eligible Postal Codes

Primary care practices and clinicians who provide care to people living in the below postal codes are invited to submit proposals for funding consideration through their associated OHT and their PCN.

Eligible Interprofessional Primary Care models and scenarios for expansion and new teams

If you are a family physician and you are unsure if your primary care payment model enables you to apply to become a primary care team, you can find more information here.

Please note the compensation rates for physicians working in or collaborating with these models are established through negotiations with the Ontario Medical Association.

Family Health Team (FHT)

Family physicians work with other primary care clinicians to address the needs of their community. Clinicians can be:

• nurse practitioners
• nurses
• physician assistants
• dietitians
• social workers
• pharmacists
• administrative staff
• other professionals

The following patient enrolment models can be affiliated with an FHT:

• Family Health Network
• Family Health Organization
• Rural and Northern Physician Group Agreement

Community Health Centre (CHC)

CHCs provide comprehensive interprofessional primary care services with an emphasis on health promotion and disease prevention. CHCs offer a range of health promotion programs that contribute to individual and community health and well-being.

Programming is responsive to community need and varies across CHCs. Salaried physicians are employees of the CHC.

Indigenous Primary Health Care Organizations (IPHCO)

Interdisciplinary team that addresses the physical, spiritual, emotional, and mental wellbeing of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples and communities.

Salaried physicians are employees of the IPCHO.

Nurse Practitioner-Led Clinic (NPLC)

An interdisciplinary team led by Nurse Practitioners (NP) who provide comprehensive primary care for those who do not have a primary care provider.

NPLCs can receive stipend funding for collaborating physicians.

Scenarios for expansion and new teams

Family Health Team

Expansion

• An existing FHT that is affiliated with one or more Family Health Organizations (FHOs) or Family Health Networks (FHNs) plans to expand their practice and would like to invite another FHO to join their team so they can roster more patients. They could apply for more interdisciplinary health providers (IHPs) and administrative staff and become an extension or satellite of the FHT.
• An existing FHT that is affiliated with a Blended Salaried Model (BSM) would like to expand and roster more patients. They could apply for an additional salaried physician FTE or IHPs.
• An existing FHT would like to expand their services and affiliated physicians plan to roster all unattached patients in one or more postal code zones. They could apply for new IHPs.

New teams

• One or more FHOs or FHNs without an affiliation to a FHT would like to expand their practice. They could propose to create a new FHT and apply to add IHPs and administrative support to their practice.
• A group of physicians who are in a Family Health Group (FHG) could apply to become a FHO which could then be eligible to apply to become an FHT.
• A group of physicians want to work in a salaried model with interprofessional and administrative support. They could create a new blended salary model (BSM) FHT.
• A Rural and Northern Physician Group Agreement (RNPGA) could decide to apply to become a FHT that will provide attachment for people living within identified postal codes.

Community Health Centre (CHC)

Expansion

An existing CHC would like to expand their services to a growing population in the catchment area. They could apply for an additional salaried physician or IHPs.

New teams

• A group of physicians or NPs decide to create a team of interprofessional providers and administrative support, creating a new CHC.
• Community organizations with an interest in primary care could collaborate with local clinicians and apply to be a new CHC that would take on all unattached patients in a postal code zone.

Nurse Practitioner-Led Clinic

Expansion

• An existing NPLC would like to expand their services to a growing population in the area. The team could apply for an additional salaried NP to attach more patients.
• An existing NPLC would like to expand services for residents of a local community housing unit (satellite or mobile services), where the NPLC provides primary care. The team could apply for additional funding that enable them to attach patients to ongoing primary care.

New teams

A group of NPs decide to apply for funding to create a team of interprofessional clinicians and administrative support, creating a new NPLC.

Indigenous Primary Health Care Organizations (IPHCO)

Expansion

An existing IPHCO would like to expand their services for Indigenous peoples. The team could apply for an additional salaried physician or IHPs and demonstrate they will attach more people to ongoing primary care.

New teams

An Indigenous organization or Band Council seeks to expand interprofessional primary care to the community. The group can apply for funding to create a new IPHCO.