This is page numbers 4325 - 4368 of the Hansard for the 19th Assembly, 2nd 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 know.

Topics

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh. Minister responsible for Health and Social Services.

Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, since we last sat I had the opportunity to go to six different NWT communities, and certainly some of them are small communities and they have a lot to say about health care delivered to them. And while some people are satisfied with it, other people see room for improvement and I'm certainly interested in hearing those ideas for room for improvement.

What we want for the whole population is the best possible health outcomes, whether they live in a small community or they live in Yellowknife. And that's something that we are very focused on as a department. Thank you.

Richard Edjericon

Richard Edjericon Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Is she willing to make a commitment to a full policy review and report back to the House in 120 days? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Yes, thank you. And I'm pleased to note that the CEO of the Yellowknife Health and Social Services region, within which Fort Resolution is located, has been to the community a couple of times this month and has opened channels of communication with the leadership there to work on the specific issues that people have raised.

I also want to say that while people may be afraid or unsure about advocating for themselves in the moment, there is also a complaint process where people, instead of sitting with their issues, can point out what their problems are and ask us for resolution.

Because it's health information, we require a confidentiality form. So if the Member has people with specific health issues that they would like the department to investigate, I recommend that he get a consent form from them and send to my attention for resolution. Thank you.

Richard Edjericon

Richard Edjericon Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Medical travel has been found to be lacking in supporting the needs of Indigenous people in the Northwest Territories. The Minister and her department has spoken about the need for non-insured health benefits for the First Nations and Inuit, a reform to improve outcomes. I agree with the Minister but that this is an area of federal jurisdiction.

Will the Minister commit to additional resources to the medical travel assistance to cover off any shortfalls in NIHB benefits until permanent changes are made by Ottawa? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Yes, thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as the Member is aware, this is a federal program and the NIHB benefits are federally funded. The Government of the Northwest Territories funds medical travel to the same extent for people who are not eligible for noninsured health benefits and not eligible for Metis health benefits.

So we spend about $45 million a year on medical travel. The older you are, the more likely you are to get access to medical travel. There is a very specific set of criteria. It's set by the federal government and we administer it.

It is time to look at it again, and the federal Standing Committee on Indigenous and Northern Affairs has invited me, invited Indigenous leaders from the NWT, invited the Minister of Indigenous Services Canada, which is the federal department responsible for this, to provide them with information to do their own review of administration and accessibility of NIHB, and I'm looking forward to their report. Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Minister. Final supplementary, Member for Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh.

Richard Edjericon

Richard Edjericon Tu Nedhe-Wiilideh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Licensed practitional nurse or LPNS requires far less training and resourcing to effectively deploy in small communities than registered nursed or nurses practitioners. These positions can effectively enhance home care services and restoring services expectation in Fort Resolution and other communities.

Will the Minister expand licensed practitional nurse positions at community health centres to ensure home care services are available in our communities? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Julie Green

Julie Green Yellowknife Centre

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as the Member may be aware, we're currently facing a shortage of nurses in the Fort Resolution health centre. They've been operating quite often with two nurses rather than three. So the idea of adding more nursing positions is a risk that because we may not be able to fill them. The nursing staff who are there provide home care and well-baby checks and of course emergency and chronic disease management.

So the nursing level is not up to where we would want it. As I said, it's two rather than three. But I feel confident that they are covering the basic needs of the community. And if there are needs that are not being addressed, I invite the MLA to bring them to my attention. Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Minister. Oral questions. Member for Hay River South.

Rocky Simpson

Rocky Simpson Hay River South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this is for the Minister of MACA.

Can the Minister confirm which companies were contracted by this government to provide abatement services to Hay River flood victims and are those companies NWT BIP registered? Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Hay River South. Minister responsible for Municipal and Community Affairs.

Shane Thompson

Shane Thompson Nahendeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Government of the Northwest Territories has four contractors to provide abatement services in the town of Hay River and K'atlodeeche First Nations. The contractors are Arctic Canada Construction, Commercial NDS, Wilf's Restoration Limited, and WINMAR. Three of the four contractors are NWT BIP registered companies, Mr. Speaker. Thank you.

Rocky Simpson

Rocky Simpson Hay River South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister tell me if the costs for additional abatement services paid directly, are they paid directly by the GNWT, and does the amount come off the $240,000 maximum allotted for damages? Thank you.

Shane Thompson

Shane Thompson Nahendeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I thank the Member for that question. And we've had this conversation numerous times over the past weekend I believe it was, when the Member went back home to meet with his constituents.

The GNWT is 100 percent paying for all detailed damage assessments and all additional abatement services. So we are paying a hundred percent. And these will not be part of the maximum from the 240 of the disaster assistance. It is all a GNWT cost moving forward. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Rocky Simpson

Rocky Simpson Hay River South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister tell me when we can expect to see the standardized list of assets and values that will be covered by DAP? People are kind of anxious. They want to get out there and start buying -- you know, buying furniture and whatever else they need for their home. Thank you.

Shane Thompson

Shane Thompson Nahendeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, as I said last week and with Trailblazer this morning, that the standardized list, item list will be posted out on the MACA website this week. We're hoping within the next couple of days. Along with information about what the list is about and how to use that to make claims for disaster assistance.

I need to tell the House and the Member and the public is that this list was developed last year during the flood. But we cannot use that same list. We need to -- when I say that, we need to make sure we update it. We've been working with the federal government. We also have to do a cost of living index on it. So this information is available.

The standard item list is to provide for basic and essential household contents that were damaged or destroyed by the flood. Pathfinders will be available to be answer questions to help people out when they're filling out their claim. But also getting this information to the three MLAs there that have been affected by the disaster in the Hay River and K'atlodeeche. So they will have that information, and we'll share that information as well as to the insurance companies moving forward. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Rocky Simpson

Rocky Simpson Hay River South

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister confirm how will advances and payments be made for damages and how can it -- how can it be used? Will it be paid out based on receipts only, or can it be paid out on the assessed amount, where receipts are not required, allowing home or business owner the use -- or to use at their discretion or a combination thereof? Thank you.

Shane Thompson

Shane Thompson Nahendeh

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I can tell the House here after they receive their detailed assessment of damage, residents can request an advanced payment if they need money immediately for work that will prevent further damage to their property. The advanced payment is based on the value of damages from the detailed damage assessments. The maximum of an advancement for residents is $10,000 but there's ability to provide up to 50 percent of total values of the damage assessment.

The Member has asked about receipts and that. Yes, receipts are what you need. However, with the standardized list, there is a process that there again, just need to work with our pathfinders to ask those questions to see what their receipts are. The importance of it. I tell people take lots of pictures, keep all the receipts, and keep track of every hour that they put in to fixing their home or their business during this.

But once we get the list, again, like I said, we will make sure this is out there and we will make sure that the Members -- three MLAs have the ability to get Q and As out to their residents as well as with our pathfinders. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Minister. Colleagues, our time for oral questions has expired. Written questions. Returns to written questions. Replies to the Commissioner's address. Petitions. Reports of committees on the review of bills. Reports of standing and special committees.

Member for Yellowknife North.

Rylund Johnson

Rylund Johnson Yellowknife North

Mr. Speaker, your Standing Committee on Government Operations is pleased to provide its report on the review of the 2021 Annual Report of the Information and Privacy Commissioner, and commends it to the House.

Introduction

The Standing Committee on Government Operations has reviewed the 2020-2021 Annual Report of the Information and Privacy Commissioner. The Access to Information and Protection of Privacy Act and the Health Information Act require the IPC to prepare an annual report. The report includes information on the number of files the IPC opens to review complaints. It can also include recommendations. The Speaker tables the report in the Legislative Assembly. Once tabled, the committee reviews the report.

As part of the review, the Information and Privacy Commissioner, Mr. Andrew Fox, appeared before committee on February 10, 2022. The committee appreciated his detailed testimony on the state of access to information and privacy protection in the territory. The committee hopes the IPC's annual reports will include more statistics on the files he reviews and investigates.

Enhanced reporting will help establish trends on why complaints and breaches arise, which public bodies they come from, and whether they are dealt with in a timely manner.

This report presents four recommendations to address the surging number of reviews within the Government's access and privacy regime. The committee is pleased to submit these recommendations to the Government of the Northwest Territories and looks forward to their implementation.

I will now pass it on to the MLA for Kam Lake.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Yellowknife North. Member for Kam Lake.

Caitlin Cleveland

Caitlin Cleveland Kam Lake

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Surging Reviews and Investigations

The IPC can open a file to review and investigate: GNWT decisions on access to information requests; Privacy complaints of improper collection, use, or disclosure of personal or health information; Privacy breach complaints; and

Any matter relating to the application of ATIPPA or HIA, whether or not an individual requested a review.

The IPC can also open a file to comment on the access and privacy implications of proposed legislation, policies, or programs.

Over the past 10 years, the number of files opened by the IPC has grown substantially. The number of files opened increased six-fold from 2011-2012 (27 files) to 2020-2021 (162 files). Much of the growth comes from files opened under the Health Information Act, which came into force in 2015-2016.

The growing number of files is not inherently bad. Recent IPC annual reports identify potential reasons driving the trend. The Health Information Act's coming into force increased the scope of privacy rights and responsibilities. The public's exercise of the right to access government information may be increasing. Similarly, the public may be more aware and protective of their personal privacy. Public bodies may also have become more aware of privacy issues and better at reporting privacy breaches. However, the high number of files is fiscally costly.

In the past 10 years, the IPC has had to spend more to keep up with the surging workload. Spending has increased by an order of magnitude from $90,000 in 2011-2012 to $547,000 in 2020-2021. Public bodies also incur costs to comply with ATIPPA and HIA. It is unclear how much the GNWT spends to comply and how that has changed over time. The government's activity reports on administering ATIPPA, which the GNWT has not published since 2016, do not report on costs.

Reduce Complaints and Costs with "Upstream" Measures

In his appearance before committee, the IPC explained that "upstream: Investments in the access and privacy regime can reduce "downstream" costs associated with access complaints and privacy breaches. As he put it more succinctly, public bodies must choose between a small expense now or a larger expense later.

"Upstream" measures address the reasons individuals request reviews of access decisions and public bodies breach personal information. Some examples include:

  • Making more government records available by default.
  • Training employees on the proper collection, use, and disclosure of personal information.
  • Procuring technology for better records management; and
  • Implementing administrative safeguards to protect personal information.

In fact, the IPC highlighted the early success of one such "upstream" measure. Since March 2021, the government has centralized some access to information functions at the new Access and Privacy Office. The IPC credited the APO's trained staff and centralized approach with promising early results. He has observed a slight decrease in the number of review requests and, as of February 2022, zero "deemed refusals" on APO files.

More "upstream" measures are needed. Committee is making four recommendations to that effect. The recommendations address persistent gaps in the access and privacy regime, raised by the IPC, that lead to complaints and privacy breaches. They also reinforce accountability for past committee recommendations that the Government has not implemented adequately.

Mr. Speaker, I will now pass this over to the Member for Thebacha. Thank you.

The Speaker

The Speaker Frederick Blake Jr.

Thank you, Member for Kam Lake. Member for Thebacha.

Frieda Martselos

Frieda Martselos Thebacha

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Recommendations

Train employees on privacy protection

The IPC's annual report identifies staff who are under-resourced, under-trained in or unaware of privacy policies as a frequent cause of privacy breaches. When he investigates breaches, the IPC frequently recommends comprehensive and regular training. He also recommends the broader publication of relevant policies.

However, there is no government-wide policy to ensure all employees receive proper training on the collection, use, and disclosure of personal information.

The issue is so important that it was the focus of the IPC's one recommendation in his appearance before committee. He said: I would urge all public bodies and health information custodians to ensure that new employees are given the appropriate training early on, both in protection of privacy and access to information, and that all employees should be given regular refreshers of that.

Committee wholeheartedly endorses the IPC's recommendation. While there are costs involved with training, the costs of not training are greater: Reviews of access decisions, privacy breaches, breach investigations, and ultimately reduced public faith in government.

Therefore, the Standing Committee on Government Operations recommends:

Recommendation 1: That the Government of the Northwest Territories, in consultation with the Information and Privacy Commissioner, and by April 1, 2023, establish a government-wide policy that ensures all employees receive appropriate training on the collection, use, and disclosure of personal information. The policy should ensure that new employees receive training early on and all employees receive regular refreshers.

The committee further recommends that the Government emphasize Indigenous recruitment and retention to fill access and privacy positions.

I will now pass this over to the Member for Inuvik Twin Lakes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.