Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise on behalf of the people of Richmond Hill South.
Petitioners are concerned that, given that traditional Chinese medicine and acupuncture are regulated health professions providing essential care and pain management in chronic disease, their exclusion from the 2025 federal primary care compendium undermines national health strategies and workforce modernization. They are concerned that the current exclusion from federal planning creates a fragmented health care system that fails to utilize the full scope of available health care providers.
Therefore, the petitioners call on the Government of Canada to, number one, formally recognize traditional Chinese medicine and acupuncture as a unique health profession as defined within the national occupational classification; number two, restructure the natural health product cost recovery model to exempt traditional herbal products, ensuring that small practices and importers remain viable; number three, formally acknowledge the integral role of these professions to ensure fair treatment and integration within all federally supported health workforce and modernization strategies; and number four, restore NOC 32200 to the express entry health care occupations category to provide skilled TCM and acupuncture professionals with equitable access to Canada's immigration system.