An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. We all believe that. So we should be investing in prevention. And it's worked. The data is unbelievable. In epidemic years, we had thousands of cases of measles and diphtheria, and now we have zero. It's remarkable.
We actually have a national immunization strategy. It is sunsetted--next year if I'm not mistaken. It's been helpful in trying to coordinate vaccine programs across the country. It involves such things as vaccine procurement for the provinces and vaccine safety. We strongly believe it has to be continued.
I don't really care how the vaccine is made accessible to kids, as long as it is. If the national government wanted to buy all the vaccine and give it to provinces, that would be just fine. If they wanted to do a trust fund like they've done before, that would be fine as well.
But you're right, it needs to be linked to a national immunization strategy and program. This would provide the underpinning. It would keep the discussions on track that are now going on among provinces' vaccine experts, so that we keep the coordination and no child in this country is lost through the cracks because of a bureaucratic set-up.