Mr. Speaker, I would like to reiterate that there is tremendous opportunity behind this bill to ensure that we would have data transfer of our health information, but at the same time, we have quite a few questions we need answered to ensure that we would remain sovereign, would be protecting our innovation and that it would still be within the jurisdiction of our provinces. We need to make sure these details are right, because Canadians need actual improvements. They do not need announcements or grand gestures. They need real improvement to a system in which our data is not being transferred between jurisdictions.
Provinces and territories are responsible for making their own health care systems. As a federal government, we need to respect the role of the provinces in this discussion. We should be working with them to make sure their health information can be shared across other provinces but that we would not be creating more red tape in doing so and that provinces would actually have their say on how this needs to operate.
We need to understand how the bill would work with the systems that are already in place and to make sure provinces would still have a say in how these changes would be implemented. If one province is using one system and another province is using another system, we have to ensure that there would be compatibility between the two and that they have a say, instead of arbitrarily saying that there is another provider to use and everybody has to make the adjustment to a new system This would cost the taxpayer entirely too much money as we try to implement this across Canada.
The other thing we need to talk about is making sure we would not make it harder for small businesses and start-ups to compete in this industry. We do not want so many rules and regulations, so much red tape, that the biggest companies would be the only ones able to develop the softwares that would be used for the data collection and transfer as we move forward. Our innovators and entrepreneurs have great ideas and amazing solutions, but they need a fair chance to compete. We should be encouraging more competition and innovation, not creating barriers that protect the biggest players and keep the little guys out.
The third thing we need to talk about is privacy and security. Canadians share some of their most personal information with the health care system, and they need to know that this information is protected. Imagine someone with a communicable disease who does not want everyone to know about it. Some hacker gets in, and then all of a sudden everyone knows about something the person has held very private, kept to themselves. We need to ensure that this information would not get out to the general public. We need to make it easier for doctors and hospitals to share important records and information, but at the same time ensure that they would be the only ones that could access them. They have to be protected, sovereign and secure.
Better information sharing is important, absolutely, but it would not fix every problem in our health care system. It would not put more family doctors in communities that desperately need them. It would not shorten the wait times for hip replacements or get someone into the emergency room faster. These challenges still need to be addressed, but this does matter. We need to make sure that the changes would lead to actual results for Canadians. This is one of the things on which we would hold the government to account should the legislation go through the steps and pass: that the government implement something and truly make a change for Canadians, not just another grand gesture with Liberals' saying they did something, but then nothing ever came of it.
Another important discussion we need to have is about data sovereignty. As we connect more of our health care systems, we need to think about who controls Canadians' data and health information. Where would the information be stored, who would have access to that information and which country's laws would apply to our Canadian health care data? This is extremely important. We cannot be dependent on foreign companies to operate the technology that our health care systems rely on, because then we could need to answer to the U.S. CLOUD Act or other provisions that would allow the U.S. to take control of our Canadian citizens' health care data.
We have to ensure that we remain sovereign, take a very sovereign approach to our Canadian data and protect the most vulnerable information of our citizens. There is absolutely nothing wrong with embracing new technology or working with companies that have offered the technology and can share that information, but we cannot put ourselves in a position where we would lose control over these systems or no longer be able to protect that information at the same time.
Canada needs to build its own expertise, strengthen our digital infrastructure and make sure we have the ability to protect our information under Canadian laws. This is the key part. Our data has to be protected under Canadian laws, especially when it comes to our health care data. Being sovereign in today's world means more than just where a company is operated or being on Canadian soil. It also matters where the data is being stored and what server is being used. Is it the cloud? Is it on the premises? How is this information being stored to protect Canadian data?
We should be embracing innovation and should be looking for ways to make our health care system more efficient and better connected, absolutely, but we must do this by having control over our own data, not by compromising Canadians' health data. Privacy, security and control matter in this conversation, and we have to make sure we discuss it.
Bill S-5 is an opportunity to make progress on an issue that is holding our health care system back. That does not mean we open our data to non-protections to move forward with data transfers. It does not mean that we will not have questions to bring forth as this policy moves forward.
When it comes down to it, Canadians are not worried, really, about which software their hospital uses or how systems communicate. What they want to know is that when they need medical care, their doctor has the information they need, they can get their services fast and their personal information will be protected. That is what Canadians care about. That is what this bill should be about, not just better information sharing, but better care, better access and better outcomes for Canadians.
