The eyes of the nation are laser-focused on Victoria this hour as Canadian Finance Minister Jim Flaherty meets with his provincial and territorial counterparts to discuss, among other things, federal health care transfers. (Okay, maybe a few Canadians are concerned about Christmas shopping, but this is still an important summit.)

The Globe and Mail is all over the story, where it seems clear that the federal government is planning to reduce their usual 6% annual increase in health care transfers to the provinces to something in the 4% range.

In case you were wondering how health care spending has grown over the past 30 years, have put together a table (with numbers supplied by the Canadian Institute for Health Information) charting provincial health care expenditures in 1980, 1990, 2000, and 2010:

British Columbia
1980: $2.9 billion
1990: $7.4 billion
2000: $13.4 billion
2010: $24 billion

Alberta
1980: $2.2 billion
1990: $5.7 billion
2000: $9.6 billion
2010: $23.9 billion

Saskatchewan
1980: $815.7 million
1990: $2.6 billion
2000: $3.2 billion
2010: $6.3 billion

Manitoba
1980: $971.4 million
1990: $2.5 billion
2000: $4.1 billion
2010: $7.7 billion

Ontario
1980: $7.6 billion
1990: $23.8 billion
2000: $39 billion
2010: $75.5 billion

Quebec
1980: $5.9 billion
1990: $14.3 billion
2000: $21.7 billion
2010: $40 billion

Newfoundland
1980: $528.4 million
1990: $1.1 billion
2000: $1.7 billion
2010: $3.3 billion

Prince Edward Island
1980: $122.3 million
1990: $256.2 million
2000: $401.4 million
2010: $842.5 million

Nova Scotia
1980: $657.2 million
1990: $1.9 billion
2000: $2.8 billion
2010: $5.7 billion

New Brunswick
1980: $562.5 million
1990: $1.5 billion
2000: $2.2 billion
2010: $4.6 billion