Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I want to talk about access to dental care and travel assistance for dental referrals. Healthy teeth are an important issue on a number of fronts. Dental hygiene and regular dental care is important to a person's health. This government has extended health care benefits, to assist with dental coverage, to Metis, Dene, seniors, and many employers provide dental care insurance benefits for their employees. Then there are those who do not fit into any of these categories and get no assistance for dental care, and I have a huge issue with that.

Another problem is that even people who are fortunate enough to have coverage, Mr. Speaker, that does not address the issue of northerners getting to and from dental services when specialized services are required outside of the area in which they live. We have an excellent pool of highly qualified dental care professionals in the Northwest Territories; however, since many of our communities are small and remote, and sometimes specialized services are required, travel assistance becomes an issue. There is a definite distinction drawn between medical care and travel assistance, which we recognize the need for and support financially as a government, and access to and travel assistance for dental care. I must say, Mr. Speaker, I find this very peculiar. Healthy teeth and gums are important to the digestion of the food we eat. Diseases of the gums and tooth decay, abscesses and infection can affect the whole body, so why are teeth treated differently and distinctly from any other part of the body? We don't say if you break your finger and need medical attention, don't worry, you've got nine other fingers so you don't need medical attention. But if you break your tooth -- and this could lead to all kinds of pain, decay and infection -- I'm sorry, that's not a medical issue.

Mr. Speaker, healthy teeth are important, as I said, to how we digest and get proper nutrition from our food. Their health can affect the rest of the body. Healthy teeth play a large part in our personal appearance, and how others perceive us, and how we see ourselves and even feel about ourselves. I don't think that dental care should be treated any differently than any type of medical attention required by the people of the Northwest Territories. I don't understand why dental care is not a service covered by our universal access to health services. By extension, I certainly don't understand why travel to receive dental care is not treated exactly the same as travel for any other medical cause, because eventually, Mr. Speaker, when people have dental care issues, we do pay eventually. Perhaps later today, Mr. Speaker, the Minister of Health and Social Services could explain to me the answer to some of these questions. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

---Applause