I call this meeting to order.
Welcome to meeting number 65 of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Health. Today we meet for two hours to continue our study of the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board.
In accordance with our routine motion, I'm informing the committee that all witnesses have completed the required connection tests in advance of the meeting.
Please allow me to welcome the witnesses joining us today. We have Matthew Herder, director of the Health Law Institute at Dalhousie University, and Douglas Clark, executive director of the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board. Thank you both for taking the time to be with us today.
You're probably aware that the convention we use at this committee is that the person posing the question to you has the right to interrupt you once the length of your answer exceeds the length of their question. That may or may not come into play today. Just so you know, if you get a two-minute question, you have two minutes to answer it; if you get less than that and go past the time, it's the member's prerogative to interrupt you. Sometimes they'll let you go and sometimes they won't. I won't intervene unless you're being treated unfairly in regard to that convention.
With that, we're going to begin with opening statements, starting with Mr. Herder.
You have the floor for five minutes. Go ahead, sir.