Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions are for the Minister of Health and Social Services. They are really about trying to introduce some common sense into the process of decision-making recognizing the need for rules and procedures. I would like to ask, first of all, would the Minister confirm that post-secondary students attending school outside the Northwest Territories who have a need for treatment or facilities or experts not available in the Northwest Territories must return to the Northwest Territories before they are actually able to access that and, of course, greatly increase cost and reduce medical outcomes? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Bromley. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Ms. Lee.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. That is the rule. I agree with the Member that it is not commonsensical. It is under review. We are looking to change that. Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, thanks for the Minister for that candid comment. That shows the Minister does have common sense herself and is willing to speak straightforwardly on that, which I appreciate.
Would the Minister also agree that there are many situations that, because of bureaucratic rules, end up costing the system more than would have been necessarily required and it actually doesn’t help in the medical outcomes that we are looking for? For example, it may end up in delays. For example, an appointment with a specialist that, because of bureaucratic rule, is delayed and that appointment can’t be booked for another six months. That obviously has some medical implications. Would the Minister agree that these sorts of things are costly both in terms of financial costs and medical outcomes? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, perhaps I answered all the questions the first time, but I just want to... Sometimes that just invites other questions. Mr. Speaker, I just want to let the Member know that the scenario that he put together in his Member’s statement, it is the rule that requires medical travel to start from the NWT is a problem for students who are working and living and going to school somewhere else. That has been red flagged. As the Member knows, we are reviewing the Medical Travel Policy and that specific issue is something that will need to be changed. It will be changed and we are working on that. Thank you.
The Minister was referring to my first question. My second question, I was broadening it up to the whole business of common sense. I wasn’t talking about students in that case. I am sure the Minister, however, does agree that there are many cases of this lack of common sense, or perhaps a better way to say it would be lack of flexibility of the system. I am talking as much perhaps more of a system, if you will, Mr. Speaker, than the Minister.
Again, I do understand the rule, the need for rules and procedures, but I am looking for flexibility might be a better way of putting it. Will the Minister commit to developing the necessary flexibility into all of our health procedures to increase our effectiveness on prevention, early diagnosis and reduced costs that these sorts of examples portray, not just restricting it to students? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. Speaker, if the Member is speaking about the Medical Travel Policy, we do have rules. If there are rules for change, I am obviously willing to look at that with the Member, but I think his question might be a little bit too broad about flexibility. We do try to have clear rules and apply them. If the Member has any suggestions for change, I am willing to listen to them. Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Lee. Final supplementary, Mr. Bromley.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate again the Minister’s openness to approach here. Perhaps I will go through committee and see if we can bring that forward.
When can students, in this case, expect to see this common sense or flexibility brought to the process? Thank you.
Mr. Speaker, as the Member knows, we are reviewing the Medical Travel Program. It is quite an extensive review. I look forward to bringing the results of that review to the standing committee so that we could work to make the program better. Thank you.
Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Ms. Bisaro.
