SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 321 - May/30/24

Hon. Mark Holland (Minister of Health, Lib.)

May/30/24 2:32:09 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, with every province and every territory, we have signed agreements to improve health care in this country, and that absolutely includes care for persons with disabilities. Specifically on sexual and reproductive health, we are making sure that we are there for women with the sexual and reproductive assistance that they need and making sure that they have the contraception they need to have control over their sexual and reproductive lives and their futures. Absolutely, we are going to continue to work with provinces and territories to increase access and resist the cuts and the reductions the Conservatives want to bring.

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Context: House Hansard - 321 - May/30/24

Hon. Soraya Martinez Ferrada (Minister of Tourism and Minister responsible for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec, Lib.)

May/30/24 7:15:06 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am also from Quebec and I fully respect Quebec's jurisdictions. I have a question for my colleague. Does he not know that, right now in Quebec, IUD fittings, for example, are not covered by insurance? Women have to pay every month for their method of contraception, which costs between $20 and $30. Many women choose not to take contraceptives. Why not simply join a program that will give all women free access to their choice of contraception?

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Context: House Hansard - 321 - May/30/24

Mr. Peter Julian

May/30/24 7:31:42 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, that is very important, too. There are 25,000 people in each and every Conservative riding in the country who would benefit from the provisions around contraception. Conservatives should be embracing that. On the issues of family planning, women's bodily autonomy, reproductive rights and freedoms, if Conservatives actually believe in freedoms, they should be supporting this bill. I am hoping, perhaps, there may be some usefulness for the $400,000 that the Conservatives are spending tonight to try to delete all sections of the bill. If one, or maybe two or three Conservative MPs wake up and actually vote in favour of the bill, maybe it will be worth it.

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Context: House Hansard - 321 - May/30/24

Mr. Angelo Iacono

May/30/24 8:44:10 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would like to start off by first saying hello to my 10-year-old boy, who is watching. I know it is past his bedtime, but his mommy has given him an opportunity to hear daddy speak. Second, I would like to say that is not what I said in my speech. Maybe the member should consult a hearing doctor. Why am I not surprised by the question from my Conservative colleague? Pharmacare, for example, is about access to contraceptives for women, which is clearly not within the priorities of the opposition party. My colleague opposite and his party have shown every woman in Canada that when it comes to contraception, they are on their own. Canadians are listening, and by now they know that when it comes to health care, they cannot trust the Conservatives, just like when the member said, making fun of the 1-800 number, “Who cares?"

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Context: House Hansard - 321 - May/30/24

Mr. Angelo Iacono

May/30/24 8:45:54 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we know very well where the members of the official opposition stands on the bill. Obviously they are against it. They do not care, and it is very easy for them to be critical about it. I thank my colleague for the tremendous work they did in shaping the bill with the government. We both understand how important it is. For example, contraceptive drugs were chosen as part of the next step in universal pharmacare specifically because contraception improves the equality of all women when they are able to receive proper care for their needs. It reduces the risk of unintended pregnancies and improves reproductive rights. Also, the bill would help all diabetic patients access proper care and be well treated.

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Context: House Hansard - 321 - May/30/24

Mr. Angelo Iacono

May/30/24 8:48:00 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, through our bilateral health agreements with the provinces and territories for the Canadian dental care plan and now pharmacare, we are delivering on the promise that every Canadian deserves better health care. Thanks to this plan, nine million women and gender-diverse Canadians across the country will be able to access the contraception and reproductive autonomy they deserve. In addition, it will help 3.7 million Canadians living with diabetes get the medication and resources they need. Canadians should never have to choose between their health and their—

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Context: House Hansard - 321 - May/30/24

Mr. Peter Julian (New Westminster—Burnaby, NDP)

May/30/24 9:00:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, Conservatives, in a bizarre way, seem obsessed with the size of the bill. It is just a few pages, they say. There is another bill that Canadians hold dear, and it is called the Canada Health Act. It is just a few pages, but it puts in place our universal health care that, in poll after poll, 80% of Canadians see as our most cherished institution. The dental care plan the NDP pushed out, which Conservatives refused to support and in fact tried to block at every turn, has now helped hundreds of seniors in the member's riding. Now we have pharmacare, which would help about 18,000 people in this riding with diabetes and 25,000 who are looking for contraception. The reality is that the next election will be a health care election. Conservatives are very badly placed because all they have done is obstruct and block rather than offering anything at all. Why is my colleague blocking legislation that would help 18,000 of his constituents who have diabetes, and who are sometimes paying up to $1,000 a month, and 25,000 people who are looking for support for contraception?

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Context: House Hansard - 321 - May/30/24

Hon. Soraya Martinez Ferrada (Minister of Tourism and Minister responsible for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec, Lib.)

May/30/24 9:28:11 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, according to the Fédération du Québec pour le planning des naissances, every dollar invested in contraception saves the Quebec government $90 in health care costs. Not all forms of contraception are available at this time. For example, IUDs are not covered by pharmacare. I would like to ask my esteemed colleague what she thinks about increasing access. It is not a matter of jurisdiction, but rather it is about saying that we will work with Quebec. We want to ensure that all women in Quebec do not have to choose between paying for contraception and paying for groceries. They do not have to choose.

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