CPAC - Wednesday, May 22, 2024 - 07:00 p.m. (ET) - Segment #2

Drugs and Technologies, the PCP A and the same mistakes are here. The bulk buying is done by the provinces through PCPA. They have agreement for generics as well. They're not covered and there's no direct reference to generics or to medications, they're not talking about those things. It takes years to get those approved in Canada. I put to you, Madam Speaker, and to my constituents back home who e-mailed me because they're worried about it. This is a pamphlet, the substance is in the agreements that may come into the future. With provinces backing out and other provinces considering, why is it in 2019 when the Government announced they're funding drugs for rare diseases, they've not done anything, not a single prescription filled for anyone for rare disease in Canada. The money is sitting there and now they started to put out RFPs to create registries for rare disease patients, rebel industries -- registries, not medication. Unspent, they've not done anything. This is the same thing, a series of broken promises, unkept promises and are being helped by the NDP to do this. Giving people false hope. I tell people who enter my office, the last thing I want to do is give false hope because rare disease families like mine, I've had two serious ones we cannot wait for the Government to get its act together. >> The Speaker: Questions and comments. The parliamentary House Leader. >> Thank you, Madam Speaker. It's talking about millions of Canadians who will benefit by the passage of this legislation and we wonder why we have to bring in a Closure Motion. The member himself started the debate and has been debating for a half hour. The Conservatives do not support pharmacare. Unlike the Liberal Party, they understand the true value and millions of Canadians will benefit from this program. Can the member be clear and explain to his constituents and to Canadians the Conservative Party does not see the benefits of supporting people on diabetes medication? The seniors on fixed income. Why doesn't the Conservative Party not support pharmacare? >> Look at my speaking time look at that member's speaking time on government business. He's delayed more government bills than any Conservative in this House. >> The Speaker: >> Voice of Interpreter: Questions and comments, the honourable member for Jonquiere. >> Thank you, Madam Speaker. I agree with my colleague on one thing, about the colleague for Winnipeg North and I agree less with him about the reasons why we oppose pharmacare. This is direct interference in Québec's jurisdiction. But I would like to note something. When we talk about rare diseases, at the beginning of the 2000s there were six major pharmaceutical companies doing 7. Seven in Canada and six in Québec. At the moment there was a program that allowed them to have taxi credits, it was the -- tax credits, the Technology Partnership of Canada. It was Stephen Harper's government in 2007. Does my colleague find that to be a bad idea? >> The Speaker: The honourable member for Calgary-Shepard. >> I think the reasons that the Bloc in general opposes this bill, Motion 39 and this bill is, of course, Québec's jurisdiction. But all province's jurisdiction. The provinces know how to best manage their health care system. And their health insurance programs. For patients and families in their provinces. Regarding programs that existed 24 years ago, many changes have been made since then. In bills and in regulations passed by the government. I'm looking at what is happening now. Not what happened 25 years ago. [ End of Interpretation ] >> The Speaker: The questions and comments. The honourable member for New Westminster-Burnaby. >> Thank you, Madam Speaker. Like my colleague I appreciate his blingism. 60 years ago the Conservatives opposed universal health care and today that is our cherished national institute. They fought dental care and now with 2 million Canadian seniors that signed up and 100,000 who received services in the first few weeks they were wrong on dental care as well so 9 the trial

he put up on pharmacare, they're wrong on health care. In his riding more than 18,000 people will benefit from the diabetes medication and 25,000 will benefit from the contraception. I know he points out that there's two provinces that oppose it though national, all the central trade unions in Québec support this and the reality is that the most unpopular government in the country is in Alberta right now and we have a premier that has been erratic. There are advantages to Albertans in signing the deals, and in passing this legislation. Why are Conservatives holding up and blocking this legislation? >> The Speaker: The honourable member for Calgary-Shepard. >> I like to correct the member. The most unpopular government today is the NDP government in British Columbia and the Eby is facing the electorate after going with the plan to approve hard drugs and spread them across the streets of Vancouver. It's interesting, I have door-knocked in his riding and I met church groups in his riding and gone door-to-door in several Burnaby area ridings. This doesn't come up. What comes up is the Carbon Tax and how punishing it is and how grocery prices are out of control. That is what's they're talking about. Not pamphlet pharmacare that's been the dream of the elites in the NDP. By the way, another plan that will go after unions who negotiate hard at the table for the benefits that they get and sometimes give up paying for better insurance benefits are going to be taken away by stuff like this. >> The Speaker: Resuming debate, the Honourable Member for Cumberland-Colchester. >> Thank Thank Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. It's a pleasure to rise to speak on behalf of democracy and common sense Conservatives in the House of Commons. What we see over and over by the costly coalition is failed plans, opportunities and failures to Canadians. Sad to see government in its last throes of its mandate that's been here for nine long and difficult years on the backs of Canadians. We have a failed dental care plan and a failed opioid experiment. We have a failing sadly health care system which pains me to no end. We have a failed pharmacare pamphlet. Why a pamphlet because it's a promise to do something which in essence it's doing nothing. It's another photo-op. When I'm back home and have a break week to visit those who support us and those who haven't, people say, hey, this great pharmacare program, when can I get my free medications and I have to go about explaining that again what we see is a photo opportunity to announce a program that has to go a consultative route with an expert panel and then has to create another government agency sadly as my colleague from Calgary-Shepard rightly already spoke about, the numerous agencies that are created and opportunities that have been lost and also then there has to be consultations with provinces to say, hey, is this something that fits into the framework of you the provinces who deliver health care, who are responsible for that delivery? We continue to see this opportunity that's being lost because of the crazy spending and wacko politics that we're speeding across the aisle over and over and over again. I spoke briefly about the failed dental care program. My colleague from the other part of the costly coalition wants to taught how many people in my riding that may benefit from the dental care plan. But I've spoken to every dental association across the country, this plan is to bad the dentists won't sign on for it. They're doing the gaslighting that we see over and over again when they talk how many dental professionals who signed up because there are dental hygienists independent from dentists but much like the health care system what Canadians want is access to a dentist or a primary care provider which this government also promised, 7500 doctors, nurses, nurse practitioners. Now we on this side of the House know that's not in the purview of the Federal Government but be that as it may that is something they promised which we all know they have not delivered. We also know that the number of people who do not have access to primary care continues to climb and I know that my colleague from Winnipeg Centre will get up and say now you're talking out

of both sides of your mouth to say, this is not the purview of the Federal Government, it's the Provincial Government because I've heard it before but, Madam Speaker, it's his Government and his side of the House in concerts with the costly coalition who promised to deliver 7500 doctors, nurses and nurse practitioners. When we see the system failing on the backs of the promises that they continue to make then we know they are continuing to fail Canadians. I talked briefly in my opening remarks about the opioid experiment which is another failure. This NDP-Liberal coalition for some reason has -- had made a decision which we hope that they will finally actually walk back on and make it law not to continue these types of personalities. But interestingly enough on behalf of Canadians we know there's reasonable evidence that the opioid epidemic that exists in North America was probably started because of access to Oxycontin. Perdue Pharma and the Sackler family was successfully sued in the United States for their complicit nature in their epidemic that existed. Because of that now we have an opioid epidemic which is often related to fentanyl. The interesting thing is how would a government believe that decriminalizing that drug and adding more of that drug and other drugs like it like hydromorphone in the streets with their so-called safe supply for zero cost as to how that could possibly fix the crisis which is started because of too much Oxycontin easily accessible. So again another failure that this government has supported. It pains me to no end to talk about the failed and failing health care system. Certainly the former president of the Canadian Medical Association Katherine smart said it concisely to say that we have a system on the brink of collapse. Why is it on the brink of collapse? Because Canadians know that the entire health care? Our country is predicated on the basis having access to the primary care. The primary care gives you access to other things and services you need and other procedures and other laboratory tests and access to specialists care. When you don't have that access then there's several things that happen. Either you don't get any access at all and your health suffers because of that and you give up or you end up trying to access the system through episodic care which is often related to visiting an emergency room which we see are incredibly clogged up. We know at this point in the history of our great country that approximately 7 million Canadians do not have access to primary care because of the failing health care system on the backs of the promises as I have mentioned of this costly coalition. When we so that what are the effects that happen? We know these effects happen on an everyday basis every member of parliament in every riding across the nation. We know that sadly, incredibly sadly people are dying while waiting for care in emergency rooms. We know that emergency rooms are clogged up for hours and hours on end. There are many stories about people waiting 12 and 24 hours. Madam Speaker the most atrocious story is the sad story of a gentleman who was a quadriplegic who waited for eannualable hours -- enumeral hours in an emergency room and had bed sores and chose MAiD. We wonder why the NDP Liberal coalition wants to spend more money on health care to the tune of $1.5 billion on this occasion talking about contraceptives and diabetes medication. So we see that they have failed at dental care, they have failed at their opioid experiment, and now they are failing at a health care plan and a failing at pharmacare. And what we also understand clearly is that this is not a plan. This is like saying oh, look, I've built a mansion when really you don't even own the lands yet on which to build said mansion. It's a pamphlet and a photo opportunity and it is another -- going to be another failure

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