You probably heard from my colleagues in the Conservative Party that there's a bit of a philosophical divide on this committee around expense, and what I'm hearing your panel suggest is very similar to the medicare system.
Sometimes I think I'm being transported back to 1962, where people are arguing, “It's too expensive to cover every Canadian for basic medical coverage. Sure, it would be nice to have everybody be able to go to a doctor or a hospital and get the coverage they want, but we just can't afford it.” I think right now medicare is one of the most cherished values of Canadians today, and not many Canadians would argue that we should dismantle our public health care system.
Am I right in seeing this as a natural extension? The next stage of pharmacare will gradually expand universal coverage to the medicines that Canadians needs?