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The Cypress Health Region is still chewing on how a smaller than usual increase to their budget might impact them.

Their budget went up by $486,000 this year or only 0.4%.

CEO Beth Vachon found it hard to respond conclusively without having a chance to crunch the numbers in more detail.

"We know that the majority of our budget is based on what we pay in salaries," Vachon said. "Collective bargaining agreements every year see increases. When we see (budget) increases of 0.4% it will present challenges in how we're going to apply that number to our biggest expense, which is salaries. Until we actually sit down with our budget and go through the numbers I don't want to be predicting that there is going to be challenges until we do that work. Based on some of the funding increases we've received in the past we've been able to manage, but this is low for us."

The health region is used to getting a budget increase of between 4% and 8% annually.

"As an entire province and health care system we really look to reduce the cost of health care and have been supportive of working to reducing what that percentage increase is every year," Vachon said "We certainly understand why we're moving in this direction. However, just on first glance I'm not quite sure how that is going to impact the region."

Vachon was happy to see the $1.5 million for a rural physician locum pool, or essentially substitute doctors for when physician are away.

Click here for the full release on the Health Care budget from the province

Interview with Beth Vachon: