Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Canada Health Transfer to provinces and territories has grown steadily from $20.3 billion in 2005 and is expected to reach $28.6 billion in 2012-13, at a growth rate around 6 percent. Under the federal government’s new unilateral funding formula, this growth will continue until 2017-18, and then proceed in line with nominal GDP growth at around the 3 percent per year level.
This all sounds pretty good and it’s simply an extension of what the provinces and territories have become accustomed to to receive from the federal government. Even the Minister of Finance has alluded earlier in this session that things should be good in the short order. However, there is a significant difference in how transfers will be calculated in the very near future.
Starting in 2014-15 the Canada Health Transfer will be allocated on an equal per capita cash basis only, where before payments were made on both a per capita basis and a points tax transfer. Because equity calculations can be complex, this new equal per capita cash payment is being sold as the simplest way to distribute money to the provinces and territories as a fair system. Yet, there is a difference between equity and equality, and treating everyone the same will prove very difficult, especially for the North and the Northwest Territories with its smaller population base and pending natural resource revenues with devolution.
Every province and territory is different in their fiscal capacity, rates of population growth, rates at which the population is aging, the proportion of Aboriginal and immigrant population or the incidence of various disease conditions. In essence, many believe that health transfers should be equalized to address regional differences in health and not just based on per capita funding.
The real solution that this government should pursue is a blended formula that combines the need for base core funding with recognition that variances in population characteristics and demographics create different regional spending pressures.
Therefore, the Canada Health Transfer payment for the Northwest Territories should be broken down into two components: one, an equal per capita cash payment recognizing fixed costs of operating a health care system with reasonable comprehensive range of services no matter the size of our territory, and two, a base payment on a formula that takes into account our population growth, differences in our age proportions and population, our proportion of Aboriginal and immigrant populations and our geographic hurdles of service delivery.
Mr. Speaker, only with this type of blended formula can the future federal health transfers be truly fair and sustainable for the people of the Northwest Territories. I wish to thank Dr. Matteo, professor of economics at Lakehead University, for allowing me to share some of his views today. I will be asking questions later for the Minister. Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. The honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, Mr. Moses.
