Madam Speaker, on October 7 I questioned the Minister of Health regarding concrete action the government needs to take to address the dramatic situation of aboriginal health as highlighted by a recent report from the auditor general.
Health is a matter of great concern for all Canadians. As Tom Irons, fourth vice-chief of the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations, stated: “I firmly believe that no other issue so fundamentally relates to the survival of our people than health”.
The 1996 report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples refers to the health status of aboriginal people as both a tragedy and a crisis. Health Canada statistics illustrate the extent of this tragedy.
Infant mortality for first nations is 1.7 times higher than the Canadian average. Life expectancy is seven to eight years lower on reserves than anywhere else in Canada. Infectious diseases like tuberculosis are 6.6 times more common among aboriginal peoples. The suicide rate among young people is up to eight times higher than the Canadian average.
These numbers are just the tip of the iceberg. Health and social conditions in aboriginal communities are disastrous and clearly unacceptable under Canadian standards.
The auditor general's report talks of abuses of prescription drugs having caused high dependency and even death among some aboriginal people. We may add to this list the ongoing lack of resources and medical staff in remote communities.
What is our government's response to this crisis? We hear a lot of words, talk of partnership and new programs, but little action. If aboriginal health is a matter of concern for this government, maybe the minister could explain why the federal government is reducing its budget allocation to health services on reserves.
The June 1997 expenditure plan from Health Canada shows a reduction of 2.9% of direct spending on aboriginal health programs between 1995 and 1996. Is the government hoping to improve the situation by reducing already scarce resources? As the auditor general rightly points out, it is necessary to establish a closer relationship between the government and aboriginal administrations in order to put forward solutions that address the specific realities of each community.
Aboriginal peoples have shown great energy and imagination in tackling health and social problems. Projects linking traditional healing practices and medical services have often proven very successful. Collaboration and partnership based on action between governments and aboriginal peoples is the first step toward addressing the dramatic situation in many aboriginal communities.
As the royal commission stated in its final report, this situation is the result of years of abuses and of paternalistic attitude that seriously damaged aboriginal self-esteem and sense of belonging, but transferring programs must not be done in a dump and run style so often employed by this government. It must be done in true collaboration with aboriginal communities to ensure that programs transferred are actually going to improve the health of aboriginal peoples.
Empowering the people involved is an essential step toward healing and creating conditions for a better future. I thus strongly urge the government to act on this and closely examine the royal commission and the auditor general recommendations regarding aboriginal health.