A new reserve is being created to hopefully entice doctors to move to Chatham-Kent.
CK’s council met on Monday where they approved a motion from Councillor Anthony Ceccacci to set aside municipal funding for financial incentives.
A total of $420,000 is being put into the reserve with $250,000 coming from a previously approved motion during budget deliberations.
The incentives can be as much as $25,000 per doctor.
"I think it's important for our community that everyone has access to a family physician," said Ceccacci.
Councillor Melissa Harrigan, who helped draft the motion with Ceccacci, shared with CK News Today that council has been told that roughly 25 per cent of CK residents don't have access to a family doctor.
"We also know that when a family physician retires, it typically takes [around] two physicians to take over those rosters because historically those rosters were much larger than they are today," she added.
Included in the motion is a request for CK's administration to bring back a report highlighting other possible incentives that don't include handing over a lump sum of money. This was a last minute addition proposed by Councillor Brock McGregor.
"It's always good policy to look at better ways we can incentivize," said Ceccacci.
Also, primary care organizations operating across CK can apply once every five years to use up to $20,000 from the reserve for new projects aimed at building or renovating space for physicians to set up their practice.
The motion also recommends that $140,000 be taken annually from the 2028-31 multi-year budget. The next elected council will be given the task of whether or not to continue the funding the reserve.
Meanwhile, CK's current council previously approved annual funding of $85,000 for the Chatham-Kent Family Physician Recruitment and Retention Task Force to better help them bring in and keep more doctors.