NDP Health Critic Don Davies noted that Bill C-213 follows the recommendations set out in the government's own Hoskins' Report and has laid out the necessary criteria for provinces to receive funding under the program.
"According to the Parliamentary Budget Officer, this plan would make pharmacare available to all Canadians, create many efficiencies and save more than $4.2 billion in prescription costs every year,” said Davies.
Parliament’s spending watchdog says relatively little of the government’s new sickness benefit will go to people who have tested positive for COVID-19.
In a report Wednesday morning, the parliamentary budget officer estimated only $50 million out of the estimated $655 million of the new sickness benefit will go to workers who have COVID-19.
As the federal government seeks to turn the Throne Speech from rhetoric into reality, some Parliamentarians say they are frustrated with the level of investment and lack of associated information dedicated to mental health in the government’s latest COVID relief bill, which unanimously passed the House on Sept. 30. MPs and mental health advocates are urging the federal government to take this moment to expand public mental health coverage to address the issues that predate the pandemic and those that’ve been exacerbated by it.
By Don Davies, MP and NDP Health Critic
Canadians cannot fight COVID-19 in the dark. Experience has demonstrated that an effective pandemic response requires clear, transparent, and open communication from governments at all levels. This is essential for maintaining public confidence in recovery plans and the legitimacy of the institutions implementing them.
Unfortunately, the Trudeau government has demonstrated a disturbing tendency to operate with secrecy, manipulation, and hyper control.
The war on drugs is a failure. We need medically-regulated safe supply to stop the flow of toxic street drugs supplied by criminals. We need better treatment options. It’s time to treat addiction as a health issue, not a criminal one
That the RCMP hasn’t said more about any costs borne by the gala is concerning, said Don Davies, a Vancouver MP who is also the NDP’s deputy public safety critic.
“There has to be a transparent and comprehensive investigation into what went on here. We need to assess whether or not there were ethical questions,” he said.
“The public has a right to know and we as parliamentarians ought to be demanding full accountability and transparency in what went on here."