I think it's important to note at the very beginning that the role of Infoway is very different from eHealth or provincial organizations that are putting electronic health records in place. Infoway is a funder, so it is about how well they assess the projects being brought to them. Are they in line with the strategies that have been developed—the blueprint? The actual development of the electronic health records is a responsibility of the provinces and the territories. Our audit looked at how well Infoway was managing in that role of strategic investor.
To compare the 17% to the $1.2 billion that has been spent is a false comparison, because much of the money—and Mr. Alvarez may have the numbers—has gone to provinces that have not completed an electronic health record. The 17% is for two provinces at this point, but much funding has gone to other provinces to help them develop the electronic health record. Getting to that goal of 50% is very dependent upon the provinces putting in the necessary funding and having the necessary management in place to be able to deliver on electronic health records.
As I mentioned, there are six auditors general looking at doing audits of electronic health records within their jurisdictions. I'm hopeful that when we come in the spring we can give the committee a better idea of the actual state of affairs. To date the reports have not been particularly positive on the management within the provinces.
I think we have to separate the roles and responsibilities of the various players. While Infoway has a very important role to play, the success of these projects is not its alone.