The federal government is investing $100 million in a national health data platform aimed at improving health services, accelerating research and supporting Canadian innovation.<\/p>\n
Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation Minister Evan Solomon and Maggie Chi, parliamentary secretary to the minister of health, announced the funding June 23 in Toronto.<\/p>\n
The investment will support the VITAL health data platform, which is being developed to securely connect de-identified clinical data from hospitals across Canada.<\/p>\n
Platform to support research and innovation<\/p>\n
The federal government says health data is often fragmented across hospitals, systems and jurisdictions, making it harder for researchers, clinicians and innovators to use it responsibly.<\/p>\n
VITAL is designed to use near real-time clinical data from hospitals to create what Ottawa says will be the largest hospital data network in Canada.<\/p>\n
The platform is expected to support health research, clinical trials and artificial intelligence innovation.<\/p>\n
The federal government says the first phase of VITAL connects 160 hospitals across Ontario, Alberta and Quebec, serving more than 20 million Canadians.<\/p>\n
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Privacy protections included<\/p>\n
Ottawa says the platform will be sovereign and secure, with provinces and territories maintaining ownership and oversight of their hospital data.<\/p>\n
The data will be de-identified and managed under governance frameworks that comply with federal and provincial health data protection standards.<\/p>\n
The government says the platform also includes Indigenous-led governance to respect Indigenous data sovereignty and privacy.<\/p>\n
Part of national AI strategy<\/p>\n
The $100-million investment was announced as part of Canada\u2019s National Artificial Intelligence Strategy: AI for All.<\/a><\/p>\n The federal government had previously committed up to $30 million over three years for the initial development of VITAL in Alberta, Ontario and Quebec.<\/p>\n In 2025, VITAL also secured $24.5 million from the Canada Foundation for Innovation for a project aimed at expanding participation to rural hospitals, developing clinical trials software and integrating medical imaging data.<\/p>\n Health AI already in use<\/p>\n