- Member of Parliament
- Minister of Health
- Liberal
- Ajax
- Ontario
- Voting Attendance: 64%
- Expenses Last Quarter: $134,982.00
- Government Page
- May/29/24 8:43:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the take-up rate among dentists in British Columbia is quite high as well. I will check the figures for each region. I do not have them right now, but I will be able to provide that information soon.
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- May/6/24 3:36:29 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for his work on this legislation. Specifically, I want to take an opportunity to thank the member for Vancouver Kingsway for his work as well.
Canadians expect parliamentarians to work together to get results, to get the services and the care that they need. It is fine that the Conservatives are going to vote against dental care or vote against pharmacare, which means they are voting against medication for diabetes and against women getting access to the contraceptives they need. It is bad enough that they would vote against it, but to block it actively, to block the elected will of the House to be able to get care to people, is extremely disturbing.
I will talk about dental care. It was really revealing to talk to dentists across the country who had been filled with misinformation, and who were shocked by how easy it is to use the dental care plan. The reason that confusion, in many cases, exists is because of the confusion deliberately being pumped into it.
Again, I would say this to the Conservatives: It is fine that they do not want people to get diabetes medication, they do not want seniors to get dental care and they do not want people to be able to get access to the contraceptives that they need. That is one thing, but they should allow the House to do its work, allow us to move the legislation forward and allow us to make sure that those people who need care get care.
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- May/6/24 3:01:53 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to start by thanking the member for Richmond Hill, who has been such an incredible advocate in making sure that all Canadians get the oral health care they deserve.
In the first three days, we have had extraordinary results. More than 15,000 seniors, just in the first three days, have already gotten service. When we think about that, it is a fundamental issue with dignity and prevention. Those are seniors who are not going to wind up in a hospital room.
We need to continue that momentum. More than 8,000 dentists have now signed up, with more and more signing up every day. We are going to get to—
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- Apr/16/24 3:07:48 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, it is great news, because, unlike the member opposite, we are working with dental providers and we are opening up a new portal, which means that in order to participate all they have to do is accept that dental card and provide service.
The dentists who I am talking to, as we work through these issues in the negotiation, are extremely excited to do what the member is not, which is to make sure that every Canadian from coast to coast to coast gets oral health care. That means that 1.8 million seniors and soon nine million Canadians will have the oral health care they need.
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- Apr/16/24 11:17:55 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, I thank the member and my friend for an important question. I have been so encouraged by the conversations that I am having with every provincial health minister across the country, regardless of their stripe. Whether I am talking to Everett Hindley in Saskatchewan or Uzoma in Manitoba, the conversations have been incredibly productive and positive. They are focused on how we get people the care they need.
I would challenge the Conservative opposition. They talk about wanting to destroy dental, how they do not want pharmacare and how they are going to block the national food program. They tell people not to dream about it and that they cannot have it. They tell people not to dream that they can get medication. They say not to dream that they can have dental care. The Conservatives are going to make sure it does not work. They are going to call dentists and scare them. They are going to give them false information. They are going to work against people getting care, for political reasons.
I think we should listen very carefully to what the Conservatives say. Are they asking questions about how they can help or how they can ensure that people get dental care? Are they asking questions about the problems that dentists have and how we can help fix them because they want to make sure people get dental care? No, they are saying to give up and have despair, and that they cannot do it. Shame on them for it.
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- Apr/16/24 11:10:32 a.m.
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Madam Speaker, it was true in the 1960s and it is true now, that there are purveyors of doom.
There are those who try to push people to despair. When one does not believe in a public health care system, what does one want people to do? One wants people to despair, because nothing comes from despair. All change comes from looking at what is hard and true and driving for change.
Let us talk very specifically. Every health care system in the world is facing extraordinary backlogs as a result of COVID and stress on their system. It is a question how we meet that. These 13 agreements and these investments of $200 billion are demonstrating that we are meeting that challenge. In these plans, in articulated detail, is exactly how we are going to get to the health system Canadians deserve.
With respect to dental care, we have thousands and thousands of dentists who have signed up across the country.
Secondly, just on Thursday, I met with the dental associations, and I can tell the House that we are down to a couple of minor issues and that I am extraordinarily confident that over the next number of months, we will see virtually every dental office in the country participating in this program.
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- Apr/10/24 2:45:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the oral health care program is quite simple. Plan members receive a card that can be used at any dentist's office across the country. With this card, dentists can use the same system as any other type of insurance. People can receive services easily.
If Quebec wants to run the oral health program, that is no problem. We can work together. It is essential that services be available to Quebeckers immediately. That is our response.
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- Apr/9/24 2:51:40 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the hon. member is exactly right. When parties work together and focus on solutions, we get things done. That means making sure that millions of Canadians who do not have access to oral health care are going to get dental care. There are 1.7 million seniors who have signed up. We have seen hundreds of thousands of dental providers across the country sign up. We are creating a new portal to make sure that it is even easier for dentists to participate.
By working together, both as parliamentarians and as Canadians, we can get through difficult times by making things better together.
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