Madam Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to speak today. I am pleased to take part in this important debate and I wish to thank the member for raising this issue for debate at this time.
Our government is committed to protecting our publicly funded health care system. Like all Canadians, we share the strong belief that all individuals deserve access to timely, quality, universal health care, regardless of their background, physical needs, where they live or how much they make. This is one of the core values of our country.
Access to health care is an important matter for all Canadians. The Canada Health Act is more than Canada's federal legislation for publicly funded health care insurance; it is an integral part of our identity. The Canada Health Act preserves the values embedded in our health care system and in our country as a whole, values of equity, accessibility and solidarity. These are the values that make Canada one of the most desirable countries in the world in which to live.
Not only do we have a health care system that all Canadians can be proud of, but it forms the bedrock of middle-class economic security. Our publicly funded health care system offers a competitive advantage for Canada in an increasingly competitive world.
The Canada Health Act requires provincial and territorial health insurance plans to provide medically necessary hospital and physician services to their residents on a prepaid basis and on uniform terms and conditions. Permitting payment for faster access to insured health services, including medically necessary MRI services at private diagnostic clinics, which has often been called queue-jumping, contravenes the accessibility criteria of the Canada Health Act.
Further, when patients jump the queue by paying to gain quicker access to a diagnostic service such as an MRI, they are then able to jump the queue a second time for any follow-up care indicated by the MRI. That means they gain faster access to both the initial diagnostic test and to any required follow-up surgery or procedures in the public system.
This is not access based on medical need. This is access based on ability and/or willingness to pay, and it is a contradiction of the underlying principle of the Canadian health care system.
It is our belief that MRI services, when medically necessary, should be covered by provincial plans. I would like to assure the House that discussions are under way in relation to this issue.
The strong support that our government has for our publicly funded health care system is echoed by the support of many Canadians. Polls continue to show that Canadians consider health care to be a high priority and that there is strong support for the principle of access to care based on need. In a September 2015 EKOS research poll, when asked if individuals should be allowed to pay extra to get quicker access to health care services, 64% of respondents disagreed.
Canadians want a system based on need, and not their ability to pay. They consider equal and timely access to medically necessary health care services to be part of our national character, not a privilege of status or income.
The hon. member may be assured that this government is committed to preserving the fundamental principles of our health care system and we will continue to work with provinces and territories to ensure access to quality health care services, based on need, not ability to pay.