Citizenship and Immigration Committee on Oct. 24th, 2017

[Dawn Edlund]

For privacy reasons, we don't tend to have conversations about individual cases with the provinces. I raised the example of provincial nominees because clearly those are cases the province knows about and to whom they've provided a nomination certificate, but then they become aware that there is an excessive demand angle to the file and they reach out to us.

[The Chair, Liberal, Rob Oliphant]

You can have one more quick question.

[Gary Anandasangaree, Liberal, Scarborough—Rouge Park, ON]

Do you have ongoing conversations with the provinces with respect to the threshold? Do you have any input from them with respect to establishing a threshold?

[Michael MacKinnon]

The threshold is determined on a statistical basis based on national data, so it's not something that the provinces feed into. We have had conversations as part of our fundamental review with the provinces, as Ms. Edlund referred to, following the discussion at the level of the FPT ministers responsible for immigration. There have been working groups and discussions in terms of helping them to understand the provision and to understand the potential impacts that any changes might have on their systems.

[The Chair, Liberal, Rob Oliphant]

Thank you.

Go ahead, Ms. Rempel.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Thank you.

Just to clarify, right now the medical inadmissibility category is not applied, for example, to people who are coming in as government-sponsored refugees. Is that correct?

[Dawn Edlund]

That's correct.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Yes, because they would already be getting a permanent resident status. Do we track, within the government-sponsored refugee class, the utilization of Canada's health care service at all, at the federal level?

[Dawn Edlund]

For government-sponsored refugees who come into Canada, such as the Syrians, for example, they are landed as permanent residents—

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Right.

[Dawn Edlund]

—so they have an automatic qualification for provincial health services, but then our interim federal health program tops up health care services that they are not covered for under, say, OHIP.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

That's for how long?

[Dawn Edlund]

It's for a period of a year—

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

It's a period of a year, but then—

[Dawn Edlund]

—while we're giving them the income support.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Okay. After that point, there isn't any more top-up, correct?

[Dawn Edlund]

Yes.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Ostensibly, if this committee is looking at recommendations around whether or not to change the formula for medical inadmissibility or whatnot, obviously cost and burden on the health care system in the provinces is going to be a consideration. Do you think it would be possible to provide the committee with some sort of estimate or analysis on the estimated increase in cost past year one for, let's say, the Syrian refugee cohort?

For my colleagues opposite, my line of thinking is this. If we're going to look at amending the formula or recommending that it be amended, we have to also look at.... If the government is going to take in larger cohorts of government-sponsored refugees in shorter periods of time, we have to think about the cost to the health care system that compounds over that period.

Would it be possible to get some of that data to include in our report?

[Dawn Edlund]

I'll start, and then Michael can jump in.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Okay.

[Dawn Edlund]

We really don't have a great line of sight on what Syrian refugees may use after our interim federal health top-up stops.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Okay.

[Dawn Edlund]

We are working on information-sharing agreements with the provinces to try to get information about social service usage, health services, educational services, employment stuff writ large, but that has nothing to do with medical inadmissibility.

[Michelle Rempel, Conservative, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Since you lack that data, could you provide us with the data that you do have for the utilization and top-up for year one?

[Dawn Edlund]

Yes.