Finance committee  I think we're supportive of those provisions. The asterisk there is that it's only addressing one part of the picture. It's a positive step, but it's certainly not going to address everything. The challenge is that those other steps that we would like to see would not be steps within the budget, but within the Canada health transfer.

Finance committee  Hypothetically, it's possible that provinces and territories would see this as a way to skirt the line. The reality is that we're already seeing across the board a lot of instances where they're turning a blind eye or are explicitly allowing practices outside of the Canada Health Act.

Finance committee  Yes. I think there are two parts to that. Part of it is that this bill relates to the budget. There are probably other provisions that would relate to Health Canada on non-budgetary matters. I think part of the challenge is that Health Canada is relying on the provinces and the territories to give them information about non-compliance.

Finance committee  From our understanding, it happened recently with Quebec. I think it was in 2016. There was around $9 million withheld from the transfer. Following the introduction of legislation to disallow user fees, Quebec was reimbursed that money. If you look at Health Canada data going back the past 15 years, there are a few other individual cases where much smaller amounts have been reimbursed.

Finance committee  Good afternoon, and thank you for inviting the Canadian Health Coalition to speak today. Founded in 1979, the Canadian Health Coalition is a public advocacy organization dedicated to the preservation and improvement of public health care. Our membership is comprised of national organizations representing health care workers, seniors, churches, anti-poverty groups, trade unions, as well as affiliated coalitions in 10 provinces and one territory.