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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 323

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
June 3, 2024 11:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 323 - Jun/3/24
Mr. Marty Morantz (Charleswood—St. James—Assiniboia—Headingley, CPC)
  • Jun/3/24 2:53:34 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the fact of the matter is that the Canadian standard of living is declining. In the United States, GDP per capita has grown more than 8% since 2019. Our economy is now underperforming the United States by the widest margin since 1965, while under the Prime Minister, the government has grown morbidly obese. More Canadians are visiting food banks than ever before. This is economic malpractice. Why is the Prime Minister spending so much to make Canadians so poor?
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Context: House Hansard - 323 - Jun/3/24
Mr. Mark Gerretsen
  • Jun/3/24 4:14:58 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the affordability aspect of it, I think, is really important. I do not think it really matters what one's economic background or economic status is, but if any Canadian were to go into a hospital and receive a bill afterward, any of us would be taken aback by that just because of the concept. I have friends who live in the United States. One gave birth recently and received a bill for $26,000. It is absolutely insane. The same logic has to apply to the medications we need. It is not even just about helping people with the costs; it is also about the investment. If we help people take care of themselves now, we are not going to have to pay as much when they end up in the hospital because they were not able to afford the medications they were prescribed. What the bill is really about, and what I tried to emphasize in my speech, is that there are varying levels of affordability right now. Some people, 20% or so, have absolutely no coverage. Some people have the platinum level of coverage where they do not have to pay anything. Then there is everybody else in between. Some people pay 60%, and some people pay 40%, 20%,10% or whatever it is depending on who is covering them. At the end of the day, in my opinion, the coverage needs to be universal, just like the coverage is universal when it comes to receiving health care from a physician or in a hospital.
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