Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  I'd like to quickly point out that the First Nations of Quebec and Labrador Health and Social Services Commission doesn't provide services directly to members of the public. However, the dramatic story of Joyce Echaquan in Quebec shone a bright light on the consequences of coloni

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Clearly, right now it's essential that mechanisms be put in place to facilitate the creation of a true continuum of care. The fact is, each province has a health care network in place, and it's often the primary network providing primary, secondary and tertiary services. This net

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  It could have a positive impact, as long as it comes with an obligation for the provincial government to provide real services to first nations. Currently, the Quebec government doesn't offer any services within first nations communities, except for medical services. I exclude th

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  In answering a question from Mrs. Gill earlier, I touched on the whole issue of flexibility. I would add that in order to improve the program overall, there has to be client‑centred thinking. It's important to ensure that every step is taken to facilitate the patient's experienc

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  The issue of mail is a good example of how the administration of the program needs to be modernized. One of the challenges we often see in small communities or in very remote areas is that there are very few professionals to deal with. There are monopolies. There are a number of

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Thank you for the question. Several recommendations were made as part of the joint review of the program, which began in 2014. It is a priority that work continue not only in consultation with first nations, but also in collaboration and partnership with them. First nations com

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  It's a topic of interest and passion. It's about having some flexibility to allow communities to propose and implement innovative solutions. Whether it's transportation, dental care or other services, there are other ways of delivering services. Sometimes providing a service thr

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  In closing, we believe that efforts must be made to support first nations in asserting their self‑determination. The necessary support and resources must be made available to them to analyze and improve the current service offering and, therefore, eliminate any form of systemic d

Indigenous and Northern Affairs committee  Good afternoon. First of all, I would like to acknowledge the unceded territories we are on. We thank the members of the committee for allowing us to outline the issues related to the administration of the non‑insured health benefits program and access by first nations to this