Thank you, Madam Speaker. Today, I was speaking about mental health in regard to the self-isolation plans for the travelling for the medical travel. Does the Minister acknowledge the added burden that the self-isolation requirements place on people who have repeated medical travel needs? Thank you, Madam Speaker.
Thank you, Member. Minister of Health and Social Services.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. Thank you for the question, Member for Nunakput. I recognize that this is a terrible time to be facing a serious illness where it's necessary to travel outside of your community and outside of the territory on a regular basis for treatment, and I certainly do empathize with the people who are doing that and recognize that, in fact, this travel is a burden. Thank you.
Has the Minister considered making special arrangements with those who frequently travel for medical travel such as cancer, that small group of people, making it easier for them so that, when they're done their medical travel, they'll come back to the territory, do their test, once a test is available, for probably three days before they're allowed to go back home? Is that possible to happen with that group of people?
It's my understanding that the Chief Public Health Officer looks at these cases on a case-by-case basis. There is no blanket exemption policy in place for people who have regular medical travel. Having said that, I recognize that this is a hardship, and I encourage the medical travellers to be in touch with ProtectNWT to see whether they can obtain an exemption for more than one trip so that they have some certainty going forward about where they're going to stay.
I think we could make that change this year, with the Assembly ourselves, with this Minister, to go forward and try to make it easier for our people who we represent, especially in the small communities. The burdens of having to fly all the way to Edmonton, you are looking at a week there, then another coming back, two weeks, so you're almost gone for a month for a one-day checkup. With the Chief Public Health Officer, the Minister is the boss of that department. That being said, can she make that change, that positive change, once it's available? Just say yes.
I am a bossy person, but I am not the boss of the CPHO. I can't tell her what to do. I can make a suggestion, and she can weigh it and decide whether she wants to go along with it. She is a very compassionate person, and I am sure that she has looked at requests like this before. If the Member has specific constituents in mind who need this service, I would encourage them to contact ProtectNWT and seek that exemption.
Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary. Member for Nunakput.
Thank you, Madam Speaker. What time does the Minister anticipate rapid testing be available to the territory on a go-forward basis? Thank you, Madam Speaker.
There is a testing unit called Panbio that will be in place in every health centre by the end of October. It will provide rapid testing in the sense that it can be used at point of care and generate a result right then and there. It is a very simple-to-use machine; it is not only available to highly trained medical professionals. The thing is that, if somebody is not symptomatic, these machines are not necessarily the things that they need most. There is sort of a sequence of events. There can be a screening test: do you have COVID now? However, there need to be follow-up tests through the isolation period, which in any case is going to be 14 days. There is no change to that. The short answer is: rapid testing is coming your way. It says in my notes the end of October, so it should be there now. I will check to make sure that's the case. Thank you.
Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Hay River South.
