44th Parl. 1st Sess.
June 18, 2024 10:00AM
- Jun/18/24 3:07:23 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, thousands of seniors, including those in my riding of Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel, have already been to see their dentist to get dental care. This shows the importance of implementing the Canadian dental care plan.
Unfortunately, the opposition continues to oppose this program day after day.
Can the Minister of Public Services and Procurement give us an update on how successful this program has been for seniors in Saint-Léonard—Saint-Michel?
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- Jun/18/24 3:08:00 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, not only is the Conservative leader against the Canadian dental care plan, but he also misled seniors in Quebec City by saying on the radio just a few days ago that the Canadian dental care plan does not exist and that people should not try to register for it. That shows contempt for seniors in Quebec.
The good news is that it is not working, because over one-third of the two million seniors who have already registered are in Quebec. Another piece of good news is that, next week, as of June 27, all children between the ages of zero and 18 and people with disabilities will also be able to sign up for the new Canadian dental care plan.
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- Jun/18/24 3:14:13 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, last month, eligible Canadians were able to begin receiving care under the Canadian dental care plan. In my community of Newmarket—Aurora and across Canada, many seniors who have not been able to afford a dentist are now able to visit participating dental providers.
Could the Minister of Health update the House with respect to how many Canadians have already received care under the plan, and about the newest cohort that can begin applying for the Canadian dental plan?
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- Jun/18/24 3:14:53 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for Newmarket—Aurora for his incredible advocacy, along with the parliamentarians in the House who are standing with vulnerable Canadians who need dental care.
In just six weeks, more than 200,000 seniors from coast to coast to coast were able to receive dental care. To put that in practical terms, the call centre got a call yesterday from an 87-year-old woman, in tears, because for the first time since she was 11 years old, somebody allowed her to get her mouth taken care of.
We are going to make sure that all nine million Canadians everywhere in the country get the care they need.
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- Jun/18/24 4:41:36 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am afraid you will not give me the amount of time I would require in order to give a detailed answer to my friend, but let me make the suggestion to her that all she needs to take a look at is the number of people in the province of Quebec who are actually registered for the dental program, and she will find that there is in fact a need for the program.
I will go further by saying that there is a need in virtually all the different regions of the country. We see that by the number of people who are actually registering, and we have not even completed the full rollout where we will see more and more individuals ultimately being able to register.
It is important we recognize that Canada is a vast country with many different regions. There are some things in which there is a need for the federal government, in working with different jurisdictions, to try to provide the programs that provide some equity and a sense of fairness so that, if someone happens to live in Vancouver, in Halifax or anywhere in between, they can get, for example, their diabetes medication.
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- Jun/18/24 4:47:06 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I want to pick up on the answer my colleague gave a few minutes ago. Some Canadian provinces have little or no pharmacare coverage and do not have the infrastructure in place for the dental care program. Quebec has both, and there is a concept called the right to opt out with compensation.
Why does the federal government refuse to give Quebec the right to opt out with compensation? This would avoid creating a second structure for Quebeckers while allowing the rest of Canada to have its own structures.
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- Jun/18/24 7:25:22 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I always like to hear from my comrade from Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke. That being said, she railed against the NDP's dental care program. It is important to note that 200,000 seniors have had dental care so far, including hundreds in Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke. In fact, as we speak, in Pembroke, dentists are advertising the NDP's dental care program. The reality is that many people in her riding are benefiting from the NDP's work.
Could my comrade and colleague please tell us why she is opposing a dental care program that her constituents—
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- Jun/18/24 7:26:07 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I am not a comrade yet.
I know the dental community in Renfrew, Nipissing and especially Pembroke well, and I can tell members that I get nothing but complaints across the valley about this so-called dental program. The Liberals did not plan anything. It is not a plan. They just threw money out there and signed people up. There is not a single dentist in Pembroke signing up to this Soviet-style dental plan, and not 200 people have received service. If the member can show us otherwise, I would be pleased to speak to it further.
Some hon. members: Oh, oh!
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- Jun/18/24 7:36:09 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, allow me to pick up on the issue of caring. If the member opposite and members of the Conservative Party truly cared, they should do some self-reflection in terms of why they do not believe that fixed-income seniors who do not have a dental plan should not be allowed to have access to dental services and be supported by the Government of Canada. Even Pembroke has dental services, I think a half-dozen or more, being made available to their constituents.
I would ask the member this: Why will Conservative after Conservative-Reform member across the way, all those reformers and former Alliance members, not support fixed-income seniors in getting dental care in the ridings they represent? Is it that they do not care?
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