Evidence of meeting #20 for Health in the 45th Parliament, 1st session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was seconds.
A video is available from Parliament.
Liberal
Conservative
Liberal
The Hon. Marjorie Michel Liberal Marjorie Michel
Okay. What I’m going to explain to you is that when we received the letter from the chief of police—
Conservative
Liberal
The Hon. Marjorie Michel Liberal Marjorie Michel
Do you want an answer or not? If you want an answer, let me answer.
February 5th, 2026 / 3:45 p.m.
Conservative
Liberal
The Hon. Marjorie Michel Liberal Marjorie Michel
I am answering you now. My answer is, yes, I have seen the letter from the police chief, but the letter from the police chief is not the only factor that goes into the approval process. As you know, he expressed his concerns about the site. Health Canada has in fact been to the facility to work with the site managers to implement much stricter measures. I must tell you the site was open. As far as we’re concerned, we don’t fund the sites. That's important to keep in mind. We provide exemptions, but it’s the provinces that fund the sites.
As long as the province wants to fund a site, we will be there to conduct the consultations.
Conservative
Dan Mazier Conservative Riding Mountain, MB
Okay, thank you.
Minister, have you personally visited a federally approved, supervised consumption site as health minister?
Liberal
The Hon. Marjorie Michel Liberal Marjorie Michel
Yes. I just returned from Vancouver, where I visited the Downtown Eastside accompanied by the police. I spent four hours there. I know exactly the magnitude of the phenomenon.
Conservative
Dan Mazier Conservative Riding Mountain, MB
From what you saw, would you want one of these sites next to children?
Liberal
The Hon. Marjorie Michel Liberal Marjorie Michel
I say this all the time, I repeated it in 2025 and I’m not going to change my stance in 2026: the drug crisis is a serious issue. It involves multiple factors, so we’ll need to do more. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution.
Conservative
Dan Mazier Conservative Riding Mountain, MB
Thank you.
Minister, does Health Canada set an age requirement on who can access all federally approved supervised drug consumption sites, yes or no?
Deputy Minister, Department of Health
We provide the exemptions. The operators determine the process under which they provide services.
Conservative
Dan Mazier Conservative Riding Mountain, MB
That's a no. Is this correct? That's okay. I take it as a no.
Minister, if a 16-year-old enters a federally approved drug consumption site, is there any requirement from Health Canada that prohibits that minor from injecting fentanyl at that site, yes or no?
Liberal
The Hon. Marjorie Michel Liberal Marjorie Michel
We just told you that we don’t manage supervised consumption sites. They’re managed by the provinces, so it’s not our responsibility. We aren’t on the ground; that’s what I mean.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Hedy Fry
I'm sorry. You're now 30 seconds over time, Mr. Mazier. I allowed you some leeway.
Now I'll go to the Liberals.
Ms. Jaczek, you have six minutes, please.
Liberal
Helena Jaczek Liberal Markham—Stouffville, ON
Thank you so much, Madam Chair.
Thank you, Minister, for coming to speak with us today.
I would like to hear a bit more about the Canadian dental care plan and how it's rolling out across the country. It was a piece of legislation in the last Parliament that I was particularly happy to support. As we know, this provides dental coverage for the first time, or for the first time in a very long time, for many Canadians. It's a significant change for families that have been postponing or avoiding care because of the associated costs.
Could you provide an update on access to dental care, including how many Canadians are currently covered and how implementation and uptake are progressing across the various provinces and territories?
Liberal
The Hon. Marjorie Michel Liberal Marjorie Michel
I have an update on dental care. As of today, 5,844,000 Canadians are enrolled in the Canadian dental care plan, 2.8 million have already received care, 27,600 oral health professionals provide services to Canadians, and 95% of dental care providers regularly bill the Canadian dental care plan, meaning that patients have access to a wide range of providers across the country. That said, the results are truly extraordinary.
We must continue to promote the program. According to estimates, 10 million people could be covered by the Canadian dental care plan. This means that some Canadians still don't know about the program, so we need to continue promoting it.
I’d like to take this opportunity to remind you of another thing: Enrolment in the Canadian dental care plan must be renewed every year. Starting in March, people will need to renew their card to access dental care.
I assume I’ve answered your question.
Liberal
Helena Jaczek Liberal Markham—Stouffville, ON
Yes, absolutely.
Actually, I'd like further information.
The majority of the provinces and territories are enthusiastic about this program. It's something that you've discussed, I have no doubt, with provincial ministers of health, and they have received this very well.
Liberal
The Hon. Marjorie Michel Liberal Marjorie Michel
Absolutely. The program is good news for Canadians. It’s an addition by the federal government to the services provided to Canadians. Oral health falls under the field of health. We help the provinces, and I think they realize that the program is very beneficial for their populations, so they appreciate it.
Liberal
Helena Jaczek Liberal Markham—Stouffville, ON
Another program that our government has introduced addresses food security.
Of course, it is absolutely vital that people have good nutrition to have good health, so we've announced a number of measures to improve food affordability, including a boost to the GST rebate, significant capital investments to support food businesses and targeted funding for food banks.
How do you see these initiatives strengthening food security? What do you feel is going to be, in essence, the health outcome for Canadians? Do you see this as an important piece that is part of your responsibility?