Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Mr. Minister, for the record, I'd like to say one thing about molnupiravir. Right now, approximately 22 countries have approved this drug, including the United States, Mexico, Morocco, Great Britain, Germany, Denmark, Italy, Indonesia, Slovenia, Serbia, Australia and Japan, through patent waiver agreements. It seems to me that we should speed up the process a little to give our workers on the ground, that is, our physicians, a variety of treatment options in certain cases.
Also, Health Canada held a public consultation from March 8 to May 7, 2021, to highlight the multiple problems associated with personal production of medical cannabis. All levels of government have taken exception to the regulations because they lead to issues related to overproduction and misuse of the program, overprescribing by physicians, limited inspection authority for police forces and a shortage of Health Canada inspection officers, resulting in insufficient inspections.
All stakeholders agree that the government needs to overhaul the medical cannabis licensing program and enhance its inspection and enforcement measures. The program has been in place since 2018. It is 2022, so it's been four years.
What steps have been taken so far and what are you going to do in the next few months to address this issue?