Health Committee on Oct. 2nd, 2025

[Helena Konanz, Conservative, Similkameen—South Okanagan—West Kootenay, BC]

Thank you, Ms. Weber, for answering that question.

I have a question about the possible suspension of the program if it's deemed that it's not safe. There have been multiple communities in British Columbia—as well as RCMP and first responders—that are crying out for this program to end.

This exemption, from what I understand, may be suspended without prior notice if the minister determines that such a suspension is necessary to protect public health or public safety.

Under what circumstances will you advise this? Under what circumstances would you say that you would suspend this program, this pilot project?

[Kendal Weber]

As noted earlier, we monitor it closely, and the Province of B.C. monitors it closely, and they engage with stakeholders. We have amended it twice over the past years at the request of British Columbia, given concerns from law enforcement, and it is now currently administered—

[Helena Konanz, Conservative, Similkameen—South Okanagan—West Kootenay, BC]

Do you believe this is a successful program?

[Kendal Weber]

As noted earlier, the exemption expires in January 2026.

[Helena Konanz, Conservative, Similkameen—South Okanagan—West Kootenay, BC]

Is it successful?

[The Chair, Liberal, Hedy Fry]

Thank you.

I now move to Monsieur Powlowski from the Liberals.

You have five minutes, please, Mr. Powlowski.

[Marcus Powlowski, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Rainy River, ON]

I have to say that I'm a little confused here on this line of questioning from the Conservatives. Yes, B.C. decriminalized the use of drugs, but I thought they asked specifically to reverse that, and I thought we had done so.

What is the status of that currently in B.C.?

[Kendal Weber]

They have requested two amendments to the exemption. The most recent amendment was previously approved by the minister. Now it is limited to personal possession in private homes, shelters and addiction clinics, so public use is not permitted outside of those locations I just listed.

[Marcus Powlowski, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Rainy River, ON]

On a second point of clarification, it seemed to me that you said—but I just want to confirm that this is true—that, on the issue of safe supply, there is no longer any safe supply being funded by the federal government through the SUAP program

[Kendal Weber]

That is correct. It ended in March of this year.

[Marcus Powlowski, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Rainy River, ON]

My next question is for Mr. Orencsak.

I think you said that our government was taking concrete steps to facilitate foreign nationals in the health care field being credentialed in Canada.

I know that health care is an area of shared jurisdiction, but certainly licensing is under the provinces. What specifically is our government doing in order to try to facilitate the licensing of foreign nationals?

[Greg Orencsak]

There are almost 200,000 internationally educated health professionals who are employed in Canada. They form an important part of the health system and help to address some of the workforce shortages with the skills they bring to the Canadian health care system.

As much as credential recognition is within the domain of the provinces and territories, we are working with our health system partners in a number of areas to help streamline immigration and foreign credential recognition processes, and to support recruitment integration and the retention of internationally educated health professionals to support health systems.

[Marcus Powlowski, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Rainy River, ON]

Can you point to any successes in this?

I know, as a physician having spoken to the Ontario College of Physicians and Surgeons, that we have implemented the program that allows evaluation of foreign credentials. Maybe you could fill me in on the name I'm forgetting, but it seems that the program has not really resulted in a lot of people being credentialed.

[Greg Orencsak]

Yes, I think you might be referencing the licensing of physicians. There has been an Atlantic registry that's been on the leading edge of that. You're right that we are supporting processes by which we can help streamline licensing and information sharing among regulators in particular, so they don't have to duplicate work and have the ability to go into one system to be able to check for the most up-to-date information on the licensing—

[Marcus Powlowski, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Rainy River, ON]

There's certainly been a call for national licensure. I think Australia has converted from state-based licensure to national licensure. There's been a lot of talk in Canada about national licensure.

What, if anything, has been the progress toward that?

I'll give you a great example of how that's a problem.

Dr. Eyolfson here is an emergency room doctor in Winnipeg. A Kenora emergency room had not enough physicians and was looking at closing. Someone from Winnipeg, even though it's a two-hour drive from Kenora, couldn't go there without first getting licensed in Ontario. This made little sense when I, as a Thunder Bay emergency room.... Are we any different? No, I don't think so, and it's a six-hour drive from Thunder Bay.

Has there been any progress on this?

[Greg Orencsak]

Yes, there has been progress and momentum. We're working with FMRAC, in particular, and engaging provinces and territories to support more of a national licensure model for physicians.

We're optimistic that there are a number of provinces that are keen to help address these challenges. I've spoken with Atlantic Canada, in particular. They've been at the forefront of this, but other provinces are also participating.

[The Chair, Liberal, Hedy Fry]

Thank you, Mr. Orencsak.

I now go to Monsieur Thériault.

You have two and a half minutes, please.

[Luc Thériault, Bloc, Montcalm, QC]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Mr. Orencsak, it's well known that Health Canada has undue delays in licensing drugs. I've been on this committee for six years, and I've been raising this issue for six years. A drug authorized in the United States since 2023, by the European Commission since 2025, in the United Kingdom since 2024, in Japan since 2023 and in China since 2024 is still being assessed in Canada.

Are you understaffed?

[Greg Orencsak]

Our approval timelines and standards, when you look at the overall statistics, compare quite favourably with those in other G7 countries. Last year, the department completed 97% of new drug reviews and 84% of generic drug reviews within established timelines.

[Luc Thériault, Bloc, Montcalm, QC]

There have been issues with licensing for six years. I could give you a list of drugs.

I'm asking you if you're understaffed, but you're not answering the question. Is your department too understaffed to compete with foreign regulators, such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, yes or no? When that body authorizes a drug, why don't you conduct an ongoing study, rather than waiting until the end of the process to begin the assessment?

There are plenty of solutions. I've been proposing them to you for six years, but nothing is changing. Are you doing anything more at Health Canada that other countries aren't doing and that they should be doing? What do you do?

[Greg Orencsak]

There are two things.

We are deploying staff and resources to support drug approvals. We're confident that we have adequate capacity to support drug approvals, but we're always looking to increase that, if possible.

We're working with other trusted partners to support mutual reliance, so that if one regulator approves a product, we might be able to rely on their approvals, which would help in terms of accelerating drug approvals.

I would also say that getting products to patients is not only up to Health Canada. We work with the provinces and territories in terms of their listing processes, which is often what takes more time.

[The Chair, Liberal, Hedy Fry]

Thank you very much.

I now go to Mr. Bailey, for the Conservatives, for five minutes, please.

[Burton Bailey, Conservative, Red Deer, AB]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

I'm going to start by asking this: Why is it easier to buy cigarettes when we want people to stop smoking? Why aren't we allowing these nicotine replacement pouches to be bought in convenience stores, as cigarettes are?

[Greg Orencsak]

The ministerial order in respect of nicotine replacement therapies was put in place as a way to protect youth from the harms of nicotine replacement pouches. That was the reason behind the ministerial order.

[Burton Bailey, Conservative, Red Deer, AB]

Cigarettes are still available with proper ID, though. Why can we not have the same for replacement therapy with the nicotine pouches?