Thank you, Mr. Bell. Supplementary, Mr. Braden.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Our society, the dynamics of our economies, communities, and our family relationships are changing very rapidly. We have some enormous potentially disruptive economic projects ahead of us. Our physical environment is changing very rapidly: education rates. So many things are changing around us, Mr. Speaker, yet we have a body of family law and policy that may not be up to the times and may not be up to what we are going to be facing and dealing with. Mr. Speaker, is it time for us to look at a comprehensive review of our family laws, policies and practices with a special eye on it for systemic biases, Mr. Speaker?

Thank you, Mr. Braden. Mr. Bell.

Mr. Speaker, that is certainly a valid suggestion. I know that this government has been doing some work with the federal government behind the scenes to look at ways that they could seek to change the system. I believe the government before this one also had an interest in advancing some of those principles and making some reforms. Mr. Speaker, I think the best approach, though, is to gauge the level of interest from our provincial colleagues and talk about how we might move forward with this. A comprehensive law review obviously takes a lot of time. It is federal jurisdiction. So I think, in the meantime, we need to do some things to make sure that we have mediation options available for couples and parents going through these issues. Law review may be where we need to go. I think it is best to gauge the interest of the other jurisdictions in that. We certainly can't drive it alone. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Bell. Final supplementary. Thank you, Mr. Braden. Before we go on, colleagues, I would like to draw your attention to the visitors' gallery, and the presence of Ms. Lena Pedersen. She holds the distinction of being the first woman elected to the Legislative Assembly.

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She was elected back on December 21st of 1970 and represented the constituency of Central Arctic. Welcome to the Assembly, Ms. Pedersen.

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Oral questions. The honourable Member for Range Lake, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my questions today are to the Minister of Health and Social Services and this whole area of sleep apnea, sleep disorder and the treatments for such conditions. I must admit, it is a pretty complex area. I understand that the Minister has had this portfolio for a week. I am hoping that this will just open a dialogue for bringing attention to him of this matter and to get some commitment from the Minister that he would be active in sorting out some of the policy areas, Mr. Speaker. As I stated in my Member's statement, this is a condition that affects about...Well, I could tell you, Mr. Speaker, that this a condition that affects about five percent of the population. There are a lot of people in the North who need to go through this testing and who could benefit from it. In fact, probably in the long run, it could save the government a lot of money if they are adequately treated. The coverage of the various equipment is one issue, but the other issue has to do with the service provider. Mr. Speaker, I have indicated that the government has put out an RFP to find a provider, a vendor, contractor to provide the service and it just came out this week. I understand that is under the guideline of the national health insurance policy, which should be the way. But my problem is, I understand this is only partial. This is interim and the government is looking at doing this in-house at the expense of about $500,000, based on a report that really has a credibility question that suggests that this has to be done internally when there are private providers who are already providing that at almost no cost. I would like to ask the Minister to commit to this House that he will look at this issue and make sure that the government will set up a policy and make sure that the government follows that national health insurance policy and that he would look at the most cost-effective measure in delivering this program. Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. The honourable Minister responsible for Health and Social Services, Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yes, we will work with the NIHB policies, of course, because if we don't, then we don't receive payment back from the federal government. So that is a commitment that we will meet. As for the area of sleep apnea and the work that was done, I wouldn't discredit the report outright. I have yet to get a briefing as to where that piece of the work is at. So I will commit to reviewing that file, looking at it, ensuring that we are making the best decisions when it comes to how our resources are used. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would urge the Minister to look at this report carefully and its recommendations, because my information is that, Mr. Speaker, the report is suggesting that the government should spend up to $300,000 to deliver programs for 200 patients when already the services are being provided for almost nothing by the private sector.

Mr. Speaker, another area is to do with the respiratory program and home care oxygen program. There are lots of people in the North who need to get extra oxygen to have daily life. There is supposed to be an RFP coming out to find a provider for that, but the government has not come out to say that that guideline, the RFP policy, will be based on the national health insurance policy as well, which it should be. That is very important that there are standards for that. Could the Minister make a commitment to look into that and make sure that we follow the proper national standard? Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yes, I will commit to having a look at that and getting information as to where that sits. Again, as I stated earlier, we will be following the policies that are established out there. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. A short supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This is information to be verified, but the information I have is that the EHB office, extended health benefits office in Inuvik, has suggested that they would look at, under this RFP, providers who may not meet the guidelines of NIHB which requires registered respiratory technologists and registered nurses. Even if they are not administering it, they have to have somebody on staff and the EHB has suggested that that might not be the case. Could I ask the Minister to look into that to make sure that the EHB office is following the proper guideline? Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as I committed earlier, once I get up to speed on this file, I will review this situation and gladly work with the Member on this specific area. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Final supplementary, Ms. Lee.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The CPAP machine, which is the equipment used to help people breathe, is accepted as coverable equipment under the NIIHB I understand. I am not an expert in this area, but it is not being covered under EHB. As I stated in my Member's statement, the previous Minister committed to including that. Could I get the Minister to just make a commitment to look into that issue and come with a directive? Thank you.

Thank you, Ms. Lee. Mr. Roland.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I am aware that the requirement for the specific machines out there are tied to existing or a problem as well, a medical condition. It would be reviewed by internal medicine and then forwarded if the requirement is there, and would fit under the policy that way. Again, I will get up to speed on this whole area. I will gladly work with Members. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Roland. Oral questions. The honourable Member for Nunakput, Mr. Pokiak.

Thank you, Mr. Pokiak. The honourable Minister responsible for Municipal and Community Affairs, Mr. McLeod.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I am just trying to confer with my colleague from Public Works. This issue has been ongoing for some time, the water system in the community. We have looked at a number of different options including replacing the line. We have conferred with Public Works on the best method to go forward. We have agreed to install a backwash system or auto flush system that will keep the system from freezing up. We will see how that works for the duration of this winter. Failing that, we would have to look at other methods of correcting the system. That may include replacing the line. Thank you.