Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for Minister Roland, the Minister of Health and Social Services. Just recently, we heard some comments by Dr. Peter Bares, the former deputy NWT Chief of Health. He spoke about Northerners being very addicted to tobacco, and apparently we are the most addicted people to tobacco in the world. Apparently one out of every four deaths in the NWT is tobacco-related. This is one of the major reasons for hospitalization in the NWT. I just received a copy of the 1999 NWT Socio-economic Scan and it pointed out that 36 percent of the NWT youths between the ages of 12 and 19, here in the North, smoke compared to a national average of 21 percent, so that is 36 percent versus the national average of 21 percent. There is a lot at stake here, Mr. Speaker, in terms of tobacco usage. There is naturally the physical suffering that people go through later in life, but there is also the tremendous financial cost to this government. It is very, very substantial. If we go back to the statistics I have just given, if one out of every four deaths in the North are a result of tobacco and it is the leading cause for people being in the hospital, could the Minister tell me if we have a program in place to deal with tobacco addiction here in the North? Thank you.
Jake Ootes on Question 15-13(8): Tobacco Addiction Among Northerners
In the Legislative Assembly on September 8th, 1999. See this statement in context.
Question 15-13(8): Tobacco Addiction Among Northerners
Item 6: Oral Questions
September 7th, 1999
Page 28
See context to find out what was said next.