This is page numbers 3501 – 3522 of the Hansard for the 17th Assembly, 5th 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 budget.

Medical Travel Policy
Members’ Statements

Norman Yakeleya

Norman Yakeleya Sahtu

Thank you, Madam Speaker. The Northwest Territories Medical Travel Policy needs a major revamping and overhauling and hopefully it will be done within this Assembly.

There are many stories on medical travel from our small communities, on the medical escorts, to the medical travel, to appointments either here in Yellowknife or in Edmonton. For example, a medical travel appointment was scheduled in Edmonton; however, there was an unexpected illness with one of the relatives in Edmonton, so this medical travel client of Tulita flew down to Edmonton to be with her sister, who was on life support, to support her, on her own expense, even though she was scheduled for an appointment in Edmonton. She tried to have her surgery appointment rescheduled; however, the doctor said that wasn’t going to be the case because the procedure had to get done.

She stayed down there, and after surgery there was no assistance for her to get anywhere. Medical travel said that since she paid her way down there, she was responsible for paying her way back to Tulita. After much stress and much agony, finally medical travel gave in. They said, okay, we will cover your costs from Edmonton to Norman Wells, but find your own way home to Tulita. So, on the bumpy road in the wintertime, after surgery, her husband had to drive to Tulita and pick her up and bring her back. This was very stressful. It was hard on her.

This is only one of many stories in the Northwest Territories. Medical travel has to have some heart and look at some of the unique situations with the people in the small northern communities where we have a lack of infrastructure, lack of programs and services. We don’t have all that they have in the larger centres.

I will ask some questions that this type of treatment is totally unacceptable, and I ask the Minister, would he look into this case specifically to see what happened and so we can adjust these policies to fit the uniqueness of medical travel in our small communities? Thank you, Madam Speaker.

Medical Travel Policy
Members’ Statements

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Yakeleya. Item 4, returns to oral questions. Item 5, recognition of visitors in the gallery. Item 6, acknowledgements. Item 7, oral questions. Ms. Bisaro.

Wendy Bisaro

Wendy Bisaro Frame Lake

Thank you, Madam Speaker. My questions today are addressed to the Minister of Finance. I would like to follow up on my Member’s statement and ask him some questions about the amount of money that is not going into the Heritage Fund.

My first question to the Minister is a question that I asked in my statement. I’d like to know from the Minister, where was the opportunity for Regular Members to take part in a vote to determine how much of the budget – the 5 percent, 25 percent, whatever – how much of our resource revenues for this year’s budget would be going into the Heritage Fund. Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Ms. Bisaro. Minister of Finance, Minister Miltenberger.

Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Thebacha

Thank you, Madam Speaker. In our system of government, we do annual budgets and the government puts a budget before the House. In effect, the government proposes and the Legislature disposes.

We started this process, as the Member said, many long months ago to set this budget in place. We’ve talked about what we were putting forward as what in our estimation was the best way to move forward to balance all the demands with expenditures, revenues, projects, infrastructure versus programs and services, all those issues. We have put before this House a document that lays that out, and now we’re engaged in the process to review and, at the end of the day, approve a budget. So, the process the Member talks about and asks about is now underway. Thank you.

Wendy Bisaro

Wendy Bisaro Frame Lake

I understand the Minister is saying that one side proposes and this side disposes. Understood, but there has been an awful lot of conversation about resource revenues over the last year, and there has been a lot of information to the Minister and to Cabinet. There was public consultation. There was a motion passed in this House last June. I want to say that… Well, I’ll say what I said in my statement, that that input was ignored.

I’d like to ask the Minister how he can justify the cost of the consultation, and I can’t remember how many thousands it was but it was a goodly amount of money – hundreds of thousands – when he basically ignored the input of NWT residents. Thank you.

Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Thebacha

Madam Speaker, we have undertaken consultation. This is now my sixth budget as Finance Minister. In the last

government, in fact, we did consultation, but it was based on Yellowknife. We’ve gone around the territory now to talk about the budget and budget consultation. As I pointed out in the communities, as well, there’s a $1.6 billion budget we are talking about. The resource revenue piece is $45 million. It’s a significant issue, but it wasn’t the only issue by far in terms of sheer quantum and we had ranging discussions about other things, about the future of the Northwest Territories, things we need to do to build our economic base… Some of the vision was needed as a territory to in fact move forward. We didn’t ignore the advice.

There was overwhelming support for the Heritage Fund, there was overwhelming support for not putting that money into programs and services, there was overwhelming support to put money into the Heritage Fund, infrastructure and doing debt repayment. All three of those things we are doing.

So the Member’s absolute statements are wrong and we intend to go back out next year. I think it’s a very good investment of dollars and there is a price for democracy. I’m willing, as Finance Minister, to go community to community every year to talk to the people and have that discussion, and there was a wide range of opinion about the Heritage Fund. At the end of the day, the government has to look at that input, plus all these other factors before us, these financial variables, the $350 million Stanton Hospital, the drop in revenues, the significant demand-driven supplementary appropriations, and we have to look at how we manage all of those and we’ve done that. Thank you.

Wendy Bisaro

Wendy Bisaro Frame Lake

The Minister has gone to my next question. I was going to presume that he was going to consult again and I’m glad to hear that he will, but I guess my question goes to – and I think it’s one that residents are asking as well – if you’re going to consult again next year, whether it be on the budget or whether it be on some other financial matter, will you take the views of the residents of the NWT into account when you develop the ‘15-16 budget? Thank you.

Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Thebacha

Thank you. That, of course, is a given. We have a very able group of MLAs that bring forward those opinions and, yes, I will do the rounds. In the first budget dialogue and the feedback sessions we had, for example, we talked about where we should put our focus with the limited funds that are available, and they gave us some good advice that we’ve built into our first budget and our second budget. We’ve received some very helpful advice on this go around, as well, including on the Heritage Fund. So, yes, we will obviously, and clearly, commit. We always take that feedback into consideration when we do the budget proposals, keeping in mind that there are other things that we have to consider as

well. We can’t just look at that piece in isolation. Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Minister Miltenberger. Final supplementary, Ms. Bisaro.

Wendy Bisaro

Wendy Bisaro Frame Lake

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Thanks to the Minister. The Minister mentioned, in answer to one of my previous questions, that the budget is now before us and that we will be deliberating the budget, and I heard a suggestion that there can’t be changes to the budget. So if there was a motion to come to this House, and the motion stated that 25 percent of our resource revenues for this ‘14-15 budget and onwards should go to the Heritage Fund, will the Minister take that as the will of the House and adopt the budget that way? Thank you.

Michael Miltenberger

Michael Miltenberger Thebacha

Thank you. The goal that we have is to stay on a fiscal path that we’ve laid out for ourselves, a sustainable path. We’ve had discussions, and very clearly, as we go forward with the budget that’s before this House, it’s going to require about a $20 million reduction of government services. We have to find the money to meet all these things we said we would do. If we want to in fact add to the mix, the 25 percent, then we have to find roughly another $10 million. If we want to do the Heritage Fund, the 25 percent, plus other committee asks, then that number goes up to $40 million. So, we will have that discussion with committee, we will lay out information that we provided yesterday in this House, for example, about understanding vacancy rates and what they actually look like when you drill down and look at them closely. We will have the discussion about if we want to put 25 percent in, then we have to find $10 million and we’re prepared to have that discussion. Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Minister Miltenberger. The Member for Deh Cho, Mr. Nadli.

Michael Nadli

Michael Nadli Deh Cho

Thank you, Madam Speaker. My questions today are for the Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs. Increasingly, seniors in the NWT are choosing to stay at home for as long as they can, of course, with their children being in the support capacity. However, we’re facing a dilemma in terms of the increased traffic on the public highway system between down south and up here in the North, especially with the establishment of the Deh Cho Bridge. However, there needs to be fundamental services that this government needs to maintain.

My question to the Minister is: I’m aware that MACA has been leading some efforts into trying to provide ground ambulances, so what emergency medical

services are currently available for Enterprise and its residents? Mahsi.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Mr. Nadli. The Minister of Municipal and Community Affairs, Mr. McLeod.

Robert C. McLeod

Robert C. McLeod Inuvik Twin Lakes

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Through the Government of the Northwest Territories, we don’t provide any medical services to the community of Enterprise. I think the service they do get provided is from the community of Hay River. But I can assure the Member that through our Interdepartmental Advisory Committee we are looking at the whole issue of ground ambulance highway rescue, as we’ve heard from Members before, so we have that work underway right now, and we’re hoping to have something out to the Members soon.

Michael Nadli

Michael Nadli Deh Cho

I’d like to thank the Minister for giving me a brief understanding in terms of the progress that MACA is leading. Surely at this point governments must have a framework of possibilities in terms of how local communities and organizations could at least dovetail the efforts of the GNWT with community initiatives.

How does Enterprise coordinate emergency ambulance services with Hay River to ensure that Hay River is always available to respond to emergencies in the community?

Robert C. McLeod

Robert C. McLeod Inuvik Twin Lakes

That’s an arrangement that the community of Enterprise would have to work out with the community of Hay River, but I can commit to the Member that our department will work with the community of Enterprise again.

These are initiatives that are normally community driven. We will work with the community, and I think, later on when we debate the budget, we might be debating some funds for ground ambulance and highway rescue services, enhancing the funds that are already there so it gives more communities an opportunity to provide training and other initiatives along those lines. We will work with the community of Enterprise to see what options they might have.

Michael Nadli

Michael Nadli Deh Cho

I’d like to thank the Minister. My final question has to do with seniors. Obviously, seniors that have a pension are on a fixed income, and so, increasingly, seniors are choosing, with the support of their families, to stay with them in their homes as long as possible. When an emergency arises, an ambulance has to be dispatched to their community and brought to the closest health centre or hospital. Recently, a resident had to incur their own personal cost of paying for that ambulance service.

Would MACA at least investigate and at some point commit to ensure that residents that have to pay for these costs will be reimbursed for those expenses?

Robert C. McLeod

Robert C. McLeod Inuvik Twin Lakes

That is an issue that they would have to work out with the provider. I can’t commit to saying that MACA will reimburse these clients that have to be taken by ambulance; however, I can commit to working with my colleague at Health and Social Services and see what options might be available to them through Health and Social Services.

The quick answer is no, we don’t reimburse costs for ambulances.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you. Final supplementary, Mr. Nadli.

Michael Nadli

Michael Nadli Deh Cho

Thank you, Madam Speaker. Other than the encouraging words that the Minister has provided, what are some of the immediate reassurances that he can give to the residents of Enterprise along with other northern communities that don’t have access to ambulance services? Mahsi.

Robert C. McLeod

Robert C. McLeod Inuvik Twin Lakes

The assurance that I can give them is that it is an issue that we’re working on with our interdepartmental group. They have come up with many suggestions. One of the big ones we’re looking at is we want to be able to help the communities be able to train personnel in the communities to respond to emergencies. One of the issues we hear is there is no point in having an ambulance if we don’t have trained personnel. We have heard that, and again, as I said, as we debate the budget that’s before the House, we will be debating some enhancements made to the funds that are available to the communities again. Once the budget is passed, then we will have to work with communities and see how the money can be distributed. But we do recognize the fact that it’s a concern across a lot of the small communities and we’re taking steps to try and address that, Madam Speaker. Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Jackie Jacobson

Thank you, Minister McLeod. Member for Nahendeh, Mr. Menicoche.

Kevin A. Menicoche

Kevin A. Menicoche Nahendeh

Thank you very much, Madam Speaker. I would like to ask the Minister of Health and Social Services questions about the Stanton Territorial Hospital.

I do visit many constituents as I pass through the hospital and some of them are there for extended stays. One of the common questions they do ask me is that they have their smartphones, they have laptops, et cetera, so they are asking me to raise the issue why they cannot get Wi-Fi or wireless feed into the hospital. Thank you, Madam Speaker.