The president of the Manitoba Metis Federation said he was caught off guard with bad news during his first meeting with the province's health minister.
David Chartrand said he was told funding would be cut for a $650,000 preventive health program.
He said he was shocked the funding was pulled and walked out of the meeting.
The program paid for five staff that work on community wellness programs out of Brandon, and do research allowing the MMF and health authorities to find solutions to Métis health problems.
Chartrand said pulling the plug now will cost the Manitoba government and taxpayers more down the road.
“Direly needed to save lives,” Chartrand added. “Direly needed to stop people going to hospitals, and the costs going higher and higher. This is absolutely needed. You have no other Métis plan."
Health Minister Kelvin Goertzen said the program was a pilot project.
"We're not cutting the funding,” Goertzen explained. “There was a pilot project that was instituted about five years ago, it was supposed to run for three years. It was extended on a year to year basis."
Goertzen said the agreement between the federation and the province expired on March 31.
Chartrand said he wants federal health money to come straight to the Métis federation, bypassing the province.
