I want to ask a couple of quick questions because I have some concerns regarding the supplementary health programs. I have run into a number of problem areas. A lot of times when there is a problem in the system, or problem with the program, people in the communities will come to the MLA for assistance. When you start to track some of these things and start to work down the line to find where the glitch is, it becomes very difficult. In most cases, there is no paper trail.
Would the Minister take a look at, especially when it comes to non-medical escorts and the requirement for them, if it is a recommendation coming from the physician that we have some kind of paper trail, so that we know that these doctors are suggesting or recommending that the patient find an escort to accompany them? At least in one case in my riding, it has been a problem.
The other problem I have run into is where people are asked to translate, especially in the southern hospitals, and they stay there for additional days at the word of the doctor stating they will be compensated, only to find out they are in fact not going to be compensated. There is no written agreement and no contract, no real solid arrangement that they can fall back on, only the doctor's word.
In both cases, it is one person's word against the other. I think it should be clear out there for the people in the North that if they are going to look at some sort of compensation to cover some of their costs, especially in the cases of non-medical escorts, or if they spend any time translating, they should not expect to get their costs covered. They do not have any written authorization.
Is there a way the Minister can look at incorporating some kind of policy, so that if the doctor is going to say, "Stay for a few days and we will cover your costs," it is in writing? If a doctor is going to recommend to a patient that they provide a non-medical escort, it is in writing so that we know?