Thank you very much, Madam Chair.
I thank the members of the committee for giving us the opportunity to appear today.
It is a pleasure to join you today from the unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe.
First, I want to situate PrescripTIon within the broader context of digital health in Canada.
Funding for PrescripTIon began in 2016, as you've heard, with the goal of modernizing the transmission of prescriptions between prescribers and pharmacists. At that time, e-prescribing was not widely used in Canada, and there was a consensus on the need to reduce reliance on paper-based processes and fax machines, which pose risks to patient safety and system efficiency.
From the outset, PrescripTIon was designed as a major digital infrastructure. Its adoption depended not only on the existence of the service, but also on the readiness of clinical systems, integration with pharmacies, evolving workflows, and the alignment of provincial and territorial digital environments.
With the support of federal funding, Canada Health Infoway worked closely with provincial and territorial governments, pharmacies and physicians to promote the use and adoption of PrescribeIT. It was used by thousands of health care providers to transmit millions of prescriptions.
It was conceived with a long-term vision to eventually become self-sustaining as adoption grew. While early results were encouraging, adoption progressed more slowly than expected. Over time, it became clear, through performance monitoring and engagement with partners, that PrescribeIT was unlikely to become self-sustaining as a single, centrally operated national service. That finding did not reflect a lack of importance of e-prescribing as an outcome. In fact, provinces and territories have consistently affirmed the value of e-prescribing as part of modern care delivery. What did not emerge, however, was a shared or collective request to sustain PrescribeIT as one federally funded and Infoway-operated national platform.
Provinces and territories are at different stages of digital readiness. They have different existing systems, different integration paths and different cost considerations. In that context, there was no consensus around a single delivery model, even as there was strong alignment on the policy objective.
The decision by Canada Health Infoway to wind down PrescribeIT reflects an evolution rather than a withdrawal from e-prescribing. The focus has shifted, as you've heard, toward enabling common standards and interoperability so that provinces and territories can implement solutions that work with their systems while still supporting pan-Canadian connectivity.
This approach recognizes the realities of a federated health system. It preserves flexibility for jurisdictions, avoids duplication and supports long-term sustainability while continuing to advance the underlying objective of safer, more efficient electronic prescribing.
It's also important to note that the federal approach to digital health is based on collaboration with provincial and territorial health systems, not on directing them. Provinces and territories participate in the strategic direction of pan-Canadian priorities, including standards and interoperability. However, decisions related to the operation or discontinuation of specific services fall under established governance structures, not a federal directive or collective requests from jurisdictions.
In the case of PrescripTIon, discussions with the provinces and territories focused on long-term sustainability, flexibility for jurisdictions and alignment with the existing system.
In summary, PrescribeIT played an important role in advancing e-prescribing in Canada at a critical moment. As the health system evolved, so too did the federal approach, from operating a national service toward enabling interoperable solutions through standards. That evolution reflects stewardship, learning and adaptation in a complex federated health system. It's about focusing federal pan-Canadian efforts to add the most value while respecting provincial and territorial roles in health care delivery.
Thank you. We're happy to take your questions.