Member for Hay River South.
No, thank you.
Department of Infrastructure, capital investment expenditures, asset management, not previously authorized Member for Yellowknife North.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I guess I just want to speak in support about how helpful I would find some sort of database of all the current projects and some sort of status to look at.
It would also be my dream, as I've spoken about before, we approve capital projects and when we do that, we are not allowed to say the total cost of the project. But the minute that we are allowed to say that, if such database could include that information so I don't have to come back and keep asking how much a project costs to get the public figure out eventually. And I know sometimes you could do that by going through all the contracts reports and adding them all up for a specific project, but you actually probably can't figure it out properly. But I did have a question as well.
I'm just trying to understand this $125 million in lapsing. You know, we are not spending $125 million. If the Minister could just give me what she believes is causing this. And I mean, is any of that political FMB decisions where they go, listen, we're just not doing this project anymore, or is it FMB going to departments and saying, you don't meet the criteria to carry over, or is it I guess is it one of those two things or something else? Thank you.
Thank you. Minister of Finance.
Thank you, Madam Chair. So I don't have the number or the 125 number in front of me. So I just want to be clear that I'm not going to speak to a specific number. And I know that it does seem like that there may be some different numbers where we somehow have managed to operate it on once again with these different documents.
But the crux of it, and the point of the question, as I understand, is really, again, how are projects that are not seeing carryovers, what is happening to them and where are those decisions.
So projects don't necessarily get they're not getting cancelled. We're not doing a cull. That's not how the item comes forward. What does come forward is the request to carry over.
So the departments would look at the projects that are underway or in planning or, you know, have contracts that have been signed, obligations established, and then those come forward to be approved for a carryover. And that's what would be in front of the House now. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Member for Yellowknife North.
Yes, thank you. Well, I guess I wonder, then, is any of that lapse, a department has just simply not applied for a carryover and then they didn't get it, or, you know, is there a capacity issue, it's actually reapplying for the money to be carried over, or are they just actually not don't have contracts in place or significant progress, I guess, on those? Thank you.
Thank you, Member. Minister of Finance.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I mean, departments certainly don't need to apply to carry over their funds. I mean, that's where we get into the situation where, you know, each department does have their projects for which they are responsible. Obviously Infrastructure has a fair chunk that they're delivering on behalf of others as well. But it is up to an individual department if they want to seek to have a carryover or not. I would, yeah, and I can't really speak for those individual decisions. But if it overtly doesn't meet the criteria of the "carryover" definition, that may be a reason not to, but then again, the explanations as to why something might be delayed could be a reason to do in favour of a carryover or to seek the carryover. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Department of Infrastructure, capital investment expenditures, asset management, not previously authorized, $20,274,000. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Department of Infrastructure, capital investment expenditures, programs and services, not previously authorized, $7,811,000. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Department of Infrastructure, capital investment expenditures, total department, not previously authorized, $28,085,000. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Please turn to page 17 of the tabled document.
Department of Justice, capital investment expenditures, corrections, not previously authorized, $780,000. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Department of Justice, capital investment expenditures, court services, not previously authorized, $175,000. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Justice, capital investment expenditures, services to the public, not previously authorized, $298,000. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Justice, capital investment expenditures, total department, $1,253,000. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Thank you. Please turn to page 18 of the tabled document.
Department of Lands, capital investment expenditures, operations, not previously authorized, $310,000. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Department of Lands, capital investment expenditures, total department, not previously authorized, $310,000. Does committee agree?
Agreed.
Thank you, committee. Do you agree that you've concluded consideration of Tabled Document 65719(2) Supplementary Estimates (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 1, 20222023? Agreed?
Agreed.
Okay. Member for Frame Lake.
Merci, Madame la Presidente. I move that consideration of Tabled Document 65719(2) Supplementary Estimates (Infrastructure Expenditures), No. 1, 20222023 be now concluded, and that Tabled Document 65719(2) be reported and recommended as ready for further consideration in formal session through the form of an appropriation bill. Mahsi, Madam Chair.
Thank you. The motion is in order. To the motion.
Question.
Question has been called. All those in favour? All those opposed? All those abstaining? Motion is carried.
Carried
Tabled document 65719(2) will be reported as ready for consideration in formal session through the form of an appropriation bill.
Thank you, Ministers, and thank you to the witnesses for appearing before us. SergeantatArms, please escort the witnesses from the Chamber.
Committee, we've agreed to consider Bill 40, an Act to Amend the Medical Profession Act. I will ask the Minister of Health and Social Services to introduce the bill.
Thank you, Madam Chair. I am here to present Bill 40, An Act to Amend the Medical Profession Act. The purpose of this bill is to allow for regulation of physicians providing virtual care to NWT residents. The use of virtual care has greatly increased, in large part due to the limit of inperson contact and medical travel during the COVID19 pandemic.
We engaged with physicians throughout the development of this bill and have committed to undertake a collaborative approach to physician regulation. We know that this work needs to be informed and supported by these professionals.
I appreciate the Standing Committee on Social Development's willingness to work with us to further amend the bill based on the feedback we received from the committee and medical professionals.
The major amendment in this bill exempts physicians in other provinces and territories from having to register to provide virtual care to NWT residents if they have a referral from an NWT doctor or nurse practitioner. Physicians in other provinces and territories within the NWT referral pathways do not have to be licensed in the NWT in addition to their home jurisdiction.
This exemption allows greater access to services for residents while reducing administrative burden for physicians. We've heard that too much paperwork to be licensed means physicians will withdraw their services from the NWT.
Second, the amendments also clarify that physicians must abide by professional standards of practice. The standards of practice set out the minimum expectations of care provided by physicians. Currently, this is an oversight not included in the Medical Profession Act.
An amendment to the bill adds a new regulationmaking power that allows for the standards of practice to be created or adopted.
We have a well-established relationship with the College of Physicians and Surgeons for Alberta. For many years, the complaints officer under the Medical Profession Act has been contracted through the college which gives advantages of economies of scale, expertise, and resources that are not available in the Northwest Territories.
With the Alberta College's full knowledge and support, work has been ongoing since 2019 to adopt standards of practice for NWT physicians that are similar to standards set by the Alberta College. The Alberta College's standards are consistent with the standards of practice for physicians in all other provinces.
This work was initiated by the complaints officer under the Medical Profession Act. The territorial medical director at the Northwest Territories Health and Social Services Authority and the department have been working on adapting the Alberta standards of practice to align with the NWT legislation and is working collaboratively with the NWT physicians to finalize them. That concludes my opening remarks. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Would you like to bring witnesses in to the Chamber.
Please.
SergeantatArms, please escort the witnesses into the Chamber.
Minister, please introduce your witnesses for the record.
Thank you, Madam Chair. On my left is Cherie Jarock, legislative counsel, and on my right is Kelly Mahoney, director of policy for the Department of Health and Social Services.
Thank you. I will now turn to the chair of the Standing Committee on Social Development, the committee that reviewed the bill for any opening comments on Bill 40. Member for Kam Lake.
Thank you, Madam Chair. Madam Chair, Bill 40, an Act to Amend the Medical Profession Act, received second reading in the Legislative Assembly on November 26th, 2021, and was referred to the Standing Committee on Social Development for review on March 28th, 2022. Committee sought and received an extension to our review period.
On May 19th, 2022, the standing committee held a public hearing with the Minister of Health and Social Services and completed its clausebyclause review of the bill. Ten motions were carried by committee and concurred with by the Minister.
I thank the stakeholders who provided feedback, Members of the standing committee for their efforts in reviewing this legislation, and of course the Minister of Health and Social Services for her collaboration in improving this bill together.
Individual Members may have additional comments or questions. Thank you very much, Madam Chair.
Thank you. I will now open the floor to general comments on Bill 40. Member for Frame Lake.
Thanks, Madam Chair. I want to thank the committee and the Minister for the work on the bill. I was able to sit in on a lot of the committee proceedings and discussions, deliberations about this bill.
The one improvement that the Minister did not mention, that I think is worthy of highlighting here, is that the addition of section 24.1 which modifies the way in which the work on regulating the medical profession is going to change.
This new clause, which was proposed by the committee and accepted by the Minister, but it was proposed by the committee, requires that there be consultation with the Northwest Territories Medical Association that was that's not in the existing legislation. So I think this will create a higher level of comfort moving forward.
I think there were some miscommunications around how the profession is actually regulated in the North and perhaps some misunderstanding about how the medical profession is regulated in the Northwest Territories, but I think with the addition in particular of this clause, I think it has created a level of comfort that was not there before and some protection for the medical profession. So I want to thank the committee for their work on this. Thanks, Madam Chair.
Thank you. Are there any further general comments? Does the committee agree that there are no further general comments? Member for Great Slave.
Sorry about that, Madam Chair. Thank you. I just wanted to comment that I appreciate everybody that did input on this bill. As I'm still learning how the legislative process all works, I found it to be one that was informative and showed me how things could shift and change as we work through it, and I appreciate the adaptability of the department and such.
I guess one comment I just wanted to make was that I find it quite interesting the parallel to a profession like engineering, that I am more familiar with the regulation of, and then the doctors and the medical professionals.
So I guess I just have more of a comment that I we love to take from others, and I think that NAPEG and the engineers and other professional associations could probably help guide this work further if we were to move towards a selfregulating group. Thank you.
Thank you, Member. Are there any further general comments? Does committee agree that there are no further general comments? Can we proceed to the clausebyclause review of Bill 40, An Act to Amend the Medical Profession Act?
Committee, a number of clauses were deleted during the Standing Committee on Social Development's clausebyclause review of Bill 40 on May 19th, 2022. The reprint before us today indicates where those clauses were deleted. As the clauses were deleted by standing committee with a concurrent of the Minister of Health and Social Services, they are not part of the bill before us today, and we will not be voting on them.
Committee, we will defer the bill number and title until after consideration of the clauses. Please turn to page 1 of the bill.
Clause 1, does committee agree?
Agreed.
