This is page numbers 157 - 194 of the Hansard for the 14th Assembly, 6th Session. The original version can be accessed on the Legislative Assembly's website or by contacting the Legislative Assembly Library. The word of the day was chairman.

Topics

Supplementary To Question 49-14(6): Gwich'in Contracting Memorandum Of Understanding
Question 49-14(6): Gwich'in Contracting Memorandum Of Understanding
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 166

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Roland. The honourable Minister of RWED, Mr. Antoine.

Further Return To Question 49-14(6): Gwich'in Contracting Memorandum Of Understanding
Question 49-14(6): Gwich'in Contracting Memorandum Of Understanding
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 166

Jim Antoine Nahendeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, all the different contracts that currently exist are going to be looked at. There are going to be arrangements, a series of meetings between representatives of our government and the Gwich'in on looking at the total work that is going to happen in the Gwich'in settlement area. That would include the highway negotiated contract as well. So all that will be considered in the total 50 percent. Thank you.

Further Return To Question 49-14(6): Gwich'in Contracting Memorandum Of Understanding
Question 49-14(6): Gwich'in Contracting Memorandum Of Understanding
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 166

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for Frame Lake, Mr. Dent.

Charles Dent

Charles Dent Frame Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Health and Social Services. It revolves around my statement earlier today on the subject of medical travel co-payments. Right now, Mr. Speaker, we have a three-tier health benefits program for supplementary health benefits. The status Dene and Inuit people have full coverage paid for by the federal government. Metis people now have 80 percent coverage and that is soon to be rising to 100 percent paid for by this government. The balance doesn't enjoy the same level of coverage. How does the Minister justify a three-tiered approach to supplementary health benefits in the Northwest Territories?

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Dent. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Miltenberger.

Return To Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 166

Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Thebacha

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My colleague has identified one of the reasons we are taking a look at this program and we want to do it in a comprehensive way because there are inconsistencies in a number of areas. We want to look at the whole program and make improvements that are necessary and address some of these fundamental flaws. Thank you.

Return To Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 166

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Supplementary, Mr. Dent.

Supplementary To Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 166

Charles Dent

Charles Dent Frame Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yesterday the Minister said he didn't want to deal with things in a piecemeal basis, but we have piecemeal in response to the Metis coverage and are doing the right thing there. Co-payment came in in the late '90s as a result of our fiscal crisis and was solely brought in as a means to raise money. Now that we have started putting money back into health and education, why will the Minister not deal with this irritant to our constituents right now?

Supplementary To Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 166

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Dent. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Miltenberger.68

Further Return To Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 167

Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Thebacha

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as the Minister, I am setting up a process to look at this in as careful and speedy a way as possible to consider all the factors and make sure that we don't leave any revenue on the table that the federal government may be currently putting into the system. We have our own fiscal realities to face. So I am acting on it in a...(inaudible)...manner, in my opinion. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Further Return To Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 167

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Supplementary, Mr. Dent.

Supplementary To Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 167

Charles Dent

Charles Dent Frame Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Minister keeps talking about the money we get from the federal government. If it's over $1 million, it means there are thousands of $250 cheques that we are getting back from the federal government. Thousands of them! Mr. Speaker, will the Minister present in this House a fiscal accounting of where that money is coming from? That $1 million that he claims is coming from the federal government on the medical travel co-payment?

Supplementary To Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 167

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Dent. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Miltenberger.

Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Thebacha

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I would be happy to table that information, as well as the information we have on the supplementary health benefits program, so people can have a sense of the scale of what we are talking about and the number of different programs that are there under the same supplementary health benefits. Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Supplementary, Mr. Dent.

Supplementary To Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Further To Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 167

Charles Dent

Charles Dent Frame Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, will the Minister, at the same time, table the cost to collect? I want to know how many people are involved in collecting this fee now that we've instituted it and how many people we've had to increase just because of this fee. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Supplementary To Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Further To Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 167

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Dent. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Miltenberger.

Further Return To Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Further To Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 167

Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Thebacha

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I will review Hansard and make every attempt to comply with the Member's request. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Further Return To Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Further To Question 50-14(6): Three-tiered Approach To Supplementary Health Benefits
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 167

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Item 6, oral questions. The honourable Member for North Slave, Mr. Lafferty.

Leon Lafferty North Slave

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I have questions for the Minister of Transportation, the Honourable Joe Handley. Last year, when I asked the Minister to change the timeframe for wide restricted loads to travel on Highway No. 3, I was told it was too late to change the schedule. Mr. Speaker, again, I see an identical schedule printed today in the Yellowknifer. I would like to ask the Minister why, after I had spoken out against it, that he would continue with the same kind of schedule as last year. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The honourable Minister of Transportation, Mr. Handley.

Return To Question 51-14(6): Restricted Load Schedule For Highway No. 3
Question 51-14(6): Restricted Load Schedule For Highway No. 3
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 167

Joe Handley

Joe Handley Weledeh

Mr. Speaker, in setting up schedules for wide loads that are moving down our highway system and up to the mines, we have to take a lot of factors into consideration, one of them being traffic. We did, as the Member requested, look at the time schedules. I asked my department, we looked at the amount of traffic and the length of highway that would have to be closed for short periods of time, based on that it was determined that the lightest traffic is from the hours of 9:00 until 11:30 in the morning. Mr. Speaker, I know there are other factors that have to be taken into consideration. I did have discussions with the Member this morning about the possibility of changing that schedule if it seems to be more suitable. Thank you.

Return To Question 51-14(6): Restricted Load Schedule For Highway No. 3
Question 51-14(6): Restricted Load Schedule For Highway No. 3
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 167

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Minister. Supplementary, Mr. Lafferty.

Supplementary To Question 51-14(6): Restricted Load Schedule For Highway No. 3
Question 51-14(6): Restricted Load Schedule For Highway No. 3
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 167

Leon Lafferty North Slave

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to thank the Minister for the answer he's given me. I would also like to see the information that he's getting about traffic at certain times. That is really great information. Everyone can use that. I would like to ask the Minister if they know when truck traffic is scheduled from Alberta coming into the Northwest Territories, why can't we set the truck traffic in the NWT? Why do we have to go along with industry? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Supplementary To Question 51-14(6): Restricted Load Schedule For Highway No. 3
Question 51-14(6): Restricted Load Schedule For Highway No. 3
Item 6: Oral Questions

Page 167

The Speaker

The Speaker Tony Whitford

Thank you, Mr. Lafferty. The honourable Minister of Transportation, Mr. Handley.