44th Parl. 1st Sess.
May 29, 2024 02:00PM
- May/29/24 2:23:42 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the challenge for the Conservative leader is that he failed to listen to the rest of the sentence or the interview, which explains why we decided to invest in services and support, like dental care, to help Canadians.
Two million seniors have registered for dental care. Since May 1, over 100,000 have already received dental care, and over 10,000 dentists have signed up.
The Conservative Party continues to oppose dental care and is still trying to discourage dentists from signing up. We are there to help Canadians.
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- May/29/24 2:26:25 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Conservative Party has been using that approach about concerns on inflation to stand against things like national food programs for kids or dental care for seniors. It has stood, objected and even campaigned against dental care for seniors over the past many months. We have delivered to over 100,000 seniors, of the two million who have already registered for dental care, the support that they had not gotten in years or even in decades. The Conservative leader stands against it with some made-up excuse around inflation, when delivering services delivers for Canadians.
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- May/29/24 8:15:55 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, yes, I was going to point that out, and I do not require the response to be limited to the amount of time of the question.
I want to go back to the minister's comments about dental care specifically. During debates in this House as recently as just a couple of weeks ago, I had an exchange with a Conservative member who tried to tell me that only 41 dentists in the entire province of Ontario had signed up for the dental care program. In my riding alone, I know there are 61, so just in my riding the number surpassed the number that the Conservative member gave out. Can the minister inform the House as to how many dentists have signed up for the program throughout the country, and in Ontario? If the minister does not have the exact number, could he give the best estimate as per his last indication?
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- May/29/24 8:16:41 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the member is right. We are seeing a really strong take-up across the country. In fact, we are now at nearly 40% of oral health providers having signed up, and that means more than 10,500 providers who are providing service every day. We are literally seeing thousands and thousands of seniors every single day getting care. Therefore, that 120,000 figure in just over three weeks is remarkable.
Before I turn it back to the member for his question, I would say that it is unfortunate. If members want to vote against it and do not want seniors to have dental care, that is their prerogative vote in this House. However, to malign the program and to actively call around and try to sabotage it and get providers to not participate is very contemptuous.
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- May/29/24 8:17:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, that is a great segue to my next question, because I was going to provide some comments on this and then ask for the minister's take on this. It is one thing to be against a dental program, speak against it and vote against it, but it is an entirely different thing to actively root for a program to fail, a program that is going to support so many Canadians. That is unfortunately what we are seeing from Conservatives. They want the dental care program to fail and not provide these very important services. I am wondering if the minister can give his insight as to why the Conservatives are playing political games with this issue.
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- May/29/24 8:41:11 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, one thing is absolutely unacceptable and that is the fact that, for many years, people across Quebec have not had access to dental care. If the Government of Quebec wants to manage that program, I have no problem with that. That is doable, but it is absolutely essential that everyone in Quebec be able to access dental care.
Why is the member opposite not working with me toward that goal? Minister Dubé had no problem with that. Why does the member have a problem with it?
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- May/29/24 8:42:06 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I will not be sharing my time. I will mainly be directing my questions at the Minister of Health. My colleague from Courtenay—Alberni will ask the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions some questions later.
The minister just gave all Canadians some good news, I think. Some 120,000 seniors have already received dental care. How many of them are Quebeckers?
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- May/29/24 8:57:11 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I look forward to the dental care update.
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- May/29/24 9:38:57 p.m.
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Madam Chair, I want to thank the member for St. Catharines for his work and for his advocacy, in and out of public life. It is tragic when we see folks, who have not received the dental care that they need, wind up in an emergency room or wind up with an urgent health care situation that could have been avoided.
Two weeks ago, I was in rural New Brunswick talking to a dentist who said, “I know exactly who does not have coverage in my community. I know that, on some given Saturday, that person is going to wind up in an emergency room, and I am going to get a call to go in and give care urgently, pro bono, away from my family, to try to fix that situation, hoping that it is not grievous for that individual.” I think that the member is talking about a situation very similar in St. Catharines.
Not allowing people to have dental care is not just a matter of dignity, of somebody having a proud smile that makes them feel good about who they are and gives them confidence to be out in the world. It is fundamentally an issue of prevention. People who do not get good oral health care wind up with bad health outcomes. They cost our health system an inordinate amount of money. That is why I am so encouraged.
The member asked for an update, and I gave it to the House earlier. We have seen more than 120,000 claims and over 100,000 seniors in just over three weeks. We are seeing, as of July 8, a new portal. We already have 10,500-plus oral health professionals who have signed up to this plan. I think we are going to see a real growth in that number. We have seen two million seniors signed up. Next month, we are going to be opening it up to persons under 18 and folks with disability who are currently on a disability tax credit. It would mean that, by next year, everybody, all nine million Canadians who do not have oral health care, will have coverage.
One may ask why this was not done at the start of our health care system. Well, at the beginning, when we were starting so many decades ago with a national health care system in this country, it was thought that oral health was just a matter of cosmetics and that it was not essential health. Of course, science and data have evolved. We know that a myriad of diseases, illness and conditions is caused by lack of oral health. Oral health is health, and that is why it is so essential that we continue to make progress to make sure that every Canadian is covered.
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- May/29/24 10:01:13 p.m.
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Madam Chair, it is always a pleasure, an honour and a privilege, of course, to rise in the House and to speak tonight at the committee of the whole to the main estimates.
I am grateful for the opportunity to speak about dental care and the current work being done by our government to improve dental care or oral health care for all Canadians and approximately the nine million Canadians who we know do not have insurance, but who need to be able to visit their oral health care provider or dental care provider when they need to.
Although inflation is easing and interest rates have stabilized, many Canadians are still struggling with the cost of food, housing and other essentials. That leaves some people having to make difficult choices about how to spend their money. Sometimes important expenditures have to be put on hold, including dental care. Faced with difficult financial choices, too many Canadians have had to postpone or forego important dental care or procedures. This can have wide-reaching impacts, including more expensive treatments and worsening health outcomes.
To support the provinces and territories in the delivery of services, our government is committed to working together with them to improve health care for all Canadians. Underpinning these priorities is the principle that every Canadian should have access to health care services, regardless of who they are, where they live or their ability to pay. With this in mind, we are working on several fronts to expand access to key services, including making oral health care more available and more affordable for more Canadians. Having access to quality oral health care plays an important role in not only our oral hygiene, but also our overall health. Regular visits to the dentist can help reduce the risk of tooth decay, gum disease and a number of serious health issues, including stroke. Unfortunately, too many Canadians have been going without these regular checkups.
The information that we have from Statistics Canada indicates that there are many obstacles to oral health care, the main one being financial. One in four Canadians avoids going to a dental professional because of the cost. That is one-quarter of Canadians who have to make the difficult decision to go without dental care and whose health could be affected by that.
It bears repeating this in English to really drive the point home.
One in four Canadians, Madam Speaker, does not visit a dental provider because of cost. That is a fourth of Canadians who have had to make the difficult decision to go without dental care and whose health might be impacted because of it.
We know that cost is not the only thing preventing Canadians from accessing quality dental care. There are many other obstacles, such as living in a remote community, having limited mobility or specific needs, cultural barriers and not being aware of the need for preventive care.
This also affects children. Tooth decay is the most common, yet preventable, childhood chronic disease, not just in Canada but around the world.
Our government is committed to improving access to dental care across the country. This is why it has made, and continues to make, significant investments in oral health care, which is an essential part of overall health. The first phase of our approach started in December 2022, when we launched the Canada dental benefit. Thus far, 439,000 children have benefited from this program, with applications open until June 30.
Budget 2023 announced an investment of over $13 billion over five years, starting in 2023-24, and $4.4 billion ongoing, to implement the new Canadian dental care plan, or the CDCP. By the time it is fully implemented, the CDCP is going to help make dental care more affordable for up to nine million Canadians who do not have access to dental insurance and who have an annual adjusted family net income of less than $90,000.
In addition, May 1 marked a significant milestone in oral health care in Canada. The first million seniors covered under the CDCP were able to start receiving the dental care they need. A Newfoundlander and Labradorian was the very first senior to receive care where the costs were covered by the CDCP. That is exciting. An online application portal is now open for potentially eligible seniors, 65 years of age and above, to apply to the CDCP, and that is just the beginning.
Starting in June of this year, adults with a valid disability tax credit certificate and children under the age of 18 will be able to apply to the CDCP. As of 2025, all remaining eligible Canadians will be able to apply.
This is the biggest social program in Canadian history, and we have been working with dental providers across the country to make it happen. This has been great work by all of us. We are proud to see that as of May 2, there are more than 7,500 providers, I think the number is actually more than 10,000 now, who have confirmed their participation in the CDCP and are now treating seniors who are eligible for the dental care plan. That number continues to increase every day. We are so grateful to these participating providers and to the providers who would rather not fully participate but who will still accept CDCP patients. We are happy that starting July 8, CDCP patients will be able to see any dental provider of their choice, as long as the provider agrees to directly bill Sun Life for services provided under the plan. This is to limit the out-of-pocket costs of dental care for their CDCP patients.
The CDCP will cover a wide range of oral health care services when recommended by a dental provider. This includes preventative care, such as scaling and cleaning, as well as other services, such as exams, x-rays, fillings, dentures and, yes, root canal treatments. The majority of services covered under the CDCP are now available. More will be added in November when services requiring pre-authorization, such as some kinds of dentures, crowns and major surgical procedures, will become available.
The CDCP is a national program being delivered and launched simultaneously in all provinces and territories to ensure equal opportunity for Canadians who do not have access to dental insurance, the nine million Canadians we know of.
Our government continues to engage with the provinces and territories on the interdependencies between the CDCP and the provincial and territorial publicly funded programs. Coverage will be coordinated not only to ensure there is no duplication, but also to ensure there are no gaps in oral health care. The important thing is that everyone, everywhere in the country, can receive equal dental care, no matter where they live.
Budget 2023 also announced $250 million over three years, starting in 2025-26, and $75 million ongoing to Health Canada to establish an oral health care access fund. The fund will complement the Canadian dental care plan by contributing to further reducing the obstacles preventing Canadians from accessing oral health care, including in rural and remote communities.
Health Canada will launch the first call for proposals under this fund this month. The call for proposals will give oral health training institutions an opportunity to present their ideas on how Health Canada funding might help them. For example, they may submit projects for addressing provider competency gaps that are contributing to obstacles to accessing care or for continuing to ensure that students receive the hands-on training they need to graduate.
A second call for proposals will be launched this summer. It will not be just about training institutions, it will focus on other obstacles to improving oral health care.
Budget 2023 proposes to provide $23.1 million over two years, starting in 2023-24, to Statistics Canada, to collect data on oral health and access to dental care in Canada. These data are crucial in helping governments devise policies that support access to dental care, that improve oral health outcomes for Canadians and that provide an effective work environment for oral health care workers.
In November 2023, Statistics Canada launched a collection of the Canadian Oral Health Survey. The aim is to collect information from Canadians on their oral health, including their ability to pay, challenges finding oral health services, experience with the oral health care system and care needs. Furthermore, Statistics Canada also launched the first survey of oral health care providers. Survey results will help us better understand the financial and operational characteristics of oral health care providers in Canada.
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- May/29/24 10:15:56 p.m.
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Madam Chair, it is just so exciting. When I drive up one of the regional roads in my riding in the city of Vaughan, Weston Road, there are three billboards put out by dentists. I took pictures of them and put them up on my communications material, pointing to dentists in my riding accepting the Canadian dental care—
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