Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. The honourable Member for Hay River South, Mrs. Groenewegen.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Many people in the Northwest Territories travel outside the North on a regular basis. Northerners are well-travelled folks, not the least of which the people in this very room. Being stuck away from home – I’m not one of those, though – injured or ill and finding out that you do not have medical travel insurance can be a very, very costly lesson.

Many NWT residents still don’t seem to know that the NWT Health Care Plan does not cover medical travel expenses that originate outside of the Northwest Territories. In Canada, residents covered by NWT Health Care will have necessary medical care paid for either directly or through reimbursement, but this coverage does not include medical travel costs, which is the expense for things like medevac, air or ground ambulance, the cost of transfers between hospitals, escorts, hotel or meals, or any other expense related to an accident or an illness when this originates outside of the Northwest Territories. Those fees could well run into the thousands of dollars. Emergency ambulance services for Inuit and treaty cardholders would be covered in some situations, but other expenses and flights home are not covered.

The story could be even worse for anyone travelling outside of Canada without medical travel insurance. Our travellers are only reimbursed at NWT rates for their necessary medical care. Let’s say the fee in a foreign country for necessary care from a doctor or in hospital was $1,000. If the NWT rate for that same service is only $250, then you are going to be out $750.

Our residents travelling abroad also have to pay for their own ambulances, travel, accommodations and similar costs. A medevac from another country, or even within Canada, is very expensive. Any time that you need a plane or an ambulance, you are looking at a very large bill.

I would remind everyone, if you are planning on travelling outside of the NWT, you should purchase medical travel insurance prior to travelling. Such coverage is available through many outlets such as banks or insurance companies, and can be

purchased on-line or over the phone. You can purchase plans that cover you for one trip or several trips or for a year at a time. It is a very modest cost, especially compared to the expenses incurred in the case of required transportation costs of an accident or illness while travelling.

I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.

---Unanimous consent granted

Do not fall into the tragic situation and financially devastating situation when you least expect it. It is up to you to protect yourself by buying independent medical travel insurance. Please purchase insurance for yourself and your family, your students that are out going to school, and remind your friends and neighbours of the risk of travelling outside of the Northwest Territories without medical travel insurance.

Thank you, Mrs. Groenewegen. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. The honourable Member for Thebacha, Mr. Miltenberger.

Thank you, Mr. Miltenberger. The honourable Member for Inuvik Boot Lake, Mr. Moses.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’d like to recognize a wonderful constituency assistant, Maia Lepage, who is also here chaperoning two of our Pages for the week. She is doing double duty this week.

At this time I would also like to recognize Mr. Ernie Bernhardt, who has been an ambassador, innovator and teacher of arctic sports throughout the circumpolar region of the world.

Thank you, Mr. Moses. I would like to welcome all visitors in the public gallery here today. Thank you for taking an interest in our proceedings.

Item 6, acknowledgements. Item 7, oral questions. The honourable Member for Hay River North, Mr. Bouchard.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of Health. I

didn’t make a Member’s statement because he has already heard my issues. He’s heard about the lack of full-time doctors in Hay River. He’s heard the interest in the nurse practitioners and the need for midwifery. My question is: With the department’s lack of flexibility in funding, has the department come up with any solution for the health authorities to allow flexibility in these types of areas in funding these positions?

Thank you, Mr. Bouchard. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Beaulieu.

Mahsi cho, Mr. Speaker. Physician funding is restricted by the Financial Management Board, so that funding is not used elsewhere. However, we are making a business case for three authorities including the Hay River Health and Social Services Authority, to the Financial Management Board to create flexibility within physician funding.

My next question along those lines, is on their business case. When can we expect this business case to go towards FMB and get some results?

We will have the business case completed by December 31, 2012.

My next question is along the lines of would this be implanted for the upcoming year starting April 1st of the year 2013-2014

financials.

If the business case is approved by the Financial Management Board, we’re hoping that the flexibility will be built into the funding by April 1st the following fiscal year, so April

1st during the 2013-2014 fiscal year is when we

hope to have the flexibility built into the funding.

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Final supplementary, Mr. Bouchard.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I’m just wondering if the flexibility in this funding is the department’s solution for funding midwifery in the authorities, or do they actually have other plans for additional funding.

We’re not thinking about paying for midwifery by building flexibility into the physician funding. That would be presented to the Legislative Assembly as an increase to O and M when the Midwifery Program is ready to go ahead in Hay River.

Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. The honourable Member for Sahtu, Mr. Yakeleya.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to ask the Minister of Health and Social Services

what the health centre’s policy is when a patient or client comes into the health centre and want to see a nurse. What is the policy? Is the nurse supposed to take them into the examination room and work with them or chase them away?

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. The honourable Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Beaulieu.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The clinical practice is to see the patient. If the patient has pain, then the practice is for the physician that is there – whether it be a nurse, nurse practitioner or doctor – to see the patient and examine the patient.

How is this policy being monitored or being enforced? When I was in Fort Good Hope, certainly, residents there had told me about this not being fully enforced. How is this policy being encouraged so that the people who go to the health centre know that the nurse is going to see them in the examination room, rather than to either give them some pills or tell them not to come back, or not to really look at the issues? How is this being monitored and enforced?

Our activities, when we’re dealing with patients of any location in the Northwest Territories, is to use the clinical guideline practices and that if an individual comes in, the nurse is obligated to give them an examination. If they determine that it’s something minor and they can give them some medication, then that may be a decision, but otherwise, they should be following the policy. It’s being monitored by our Health and Social Services department with the health and social services authorities across the North.