Evidence of meeting #53 for Health in the 39th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was million.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Conservative
Tony Clement Conservative Parry Sound—Muskoka, ON
Out of the sausage factory, the sausage came out the other end.
NDP
Penny Priddy NDP Surrey North, BC
Thank you.
As we all know, one of the biggest pieces in health care reform is going to be primary care--I don't think there's any question about that--and how we change how primary care is delivered. I know that the government has not renewed the primary health care transition fund in the 2007-08 budget. I realize it was a six-year project.
Would you tell me two things, please. First, for those people who were not part of those...and I think I just got through the first year of that while I was still health minister. How will physicians who were not part of that be helped in terms of making a difference in primary health care?
As well, since the evaluation was finished in 2006, can I please have a copy? I have people asking me all the time about the evaluation of that project, and I haven't seen it. There are some physicians I talk with who haven't seen it either, and they'd be really pleased to see it.
Conservative
Tony Clement Conservative Parry Sound—Muskoka, ON
The answer to the second part of your question is yes, of course.
The answer to the first part of your question has a couple of aspects to it. Number one, the Government of Canada, through its health transfers to the provinces and territories, increased their transfers by $1.2 billion--as a result of the 2004 health accord--this year alone. Over and above that $1.2 billion, there was an extra $1 billion as a result of our patient wait time guarantee proposals, accepted by every province and territory. Embedded in that are a number of projects that relate to primary care reform.
So I guess my suggestion to you is that primary care reform lives on. It's part and parcel of our wait time guarantees and the pilot projects that will roll out as a result of that. I think you can take some comfort in that.
NDP
Penny Priddy NDP Surrey North, BC
Perhaps seeing the evaluation and being able to share that then across the country will give other people who have not had the benefit of being involved in it ideas that have been learned from it. I think that's why we do demonstration projects. There are a lot of physicians asking about it so they too can learn. If I could have a copy sent to my office, that would be excellent.
The Assisted Human Reproduction Agency has spent $23 million, or will have by the end of this year, between last year and this year. Given that the board was only recently put in place, and as has been mentioned, the regulations are extremely slow in coming, can you share with us what $23 million will be spent on? It's a lot of money, and I'd like to know about the outcome. When will it really be operative, really up and running and doing its work?
Conservative
Tony Clement Conservative Parry Sound—Muskoka, ON
I'm going to defer to Mr. Fedyk, who has a comprehensive answer.
Frank Fedyk Acting Assistant Deputy Minister, Health Policy Branch, Department of Health
The agency has been set up. Its office is being fitted in Vancouver. The president is engaging in hiring of staff and also building the infrastructure with respect to the regulatory function it'll have in overseeing the regulations. So it's building up, and we'll be consulting with stakeholders and the clinics with respect to these activities around information and working with them.
NDP
Penny Priddy NDP Surrey North, BC
I understand that part. Did it take $9 million last year to do that?
Acting Assistant Deputy Minister, Health Policy Branch, Department of Health
The agency didn't exist last year, so the funds will be reprofiled to future years. The agency was created only in February of this year.
Acting Assistant Deputy Minister, Health Policy Branch, Department of Health
I don't have the actual amount
Acting Assistant Deputy Minister, Health Policy Branch, Department of Health
We'll have to get back to you.
NDP
Penny Priddy NDP Surrey North, BC
I'd like to know how much was actually spent last year then, if I could, please. When will it actually be up and running? When can we say we have an agency that's up and running, you can go to it, it's working, it's reviewing regulations? It's an easy answer.
Conservative
Tony Clement Conservative Parry Sound—Muskoka, ON
They had a two- or three-day meeting in late March. So they've had their inaugural board meeting.
Conservative
Tony Clement Conservative Parry Sound—Muskoka, ON
It's a duly constituted board, and of course it can be stronger in the future.
Conservative
Tony Clement Conservative Parry Sound—Muskoka, ON
It's very strong right now. I have every confidence in them.
NDP
Penny Priddy NDP Surrey North, BC
So you're expecting, then, that they'll spend $13 million this year. Will they also get the rollover from last year?
Conservative
Tony Clement Conservative Parry Sound—Muskoka, ON
I think, as Frank indicated, we don't stop spending money on it now that it exists. So that just sort of gets tacked on to the end of the budget.
NDP
Penny Priddy NDP Surrey North, BC
So if they spent only $3 million last year, they'll get $19 million this year?
Acting Assistant Deputy Minister, Health Policy Branch, Department of Health
It's being reprofiled for future years.
NDP
Penny Priddy NDP Surrey North, BC
I love “reprofiled”. It's such a great term, because it's never actually clear what it means.
My last question is this. For the second year in a row, it looks to me--and you can help me to understand this better--when I look at page 13-2, we are seeing staff reductions. That looks like a bit of a trend to me, based on what I saw last year as well. At least when we look at contributions to employee benefit plans, under the first three categories on page 13-2, we see reductions to staff. That seems to be a trend from the year before. It's actually under the first four. Can you speak to me about what that trend means, please?
Deputy Minister, Department of Health
Mr. Chair, as we understand it, the Treasury Board Secretariat provides departments with the rate at which to calculate employee benefit plans. This is a rate that's a percentage of each department's personnel costs. The rate the departments were required to use in the preparation of the 2006-07 main estimates was 19% for personnel costs.