Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In keeping with the theme of patting ourselves on the back, I would like first to congratulate the Premier for assigning Mr. Handley to the Diavik file when it seemed necessary, as Mr. Handley did such a fine job on that. My question relates to further projects coming down the pipe here. A few of us at PDAC saw some presentations on the next projects. For instance, one project that comes to mind is the Winspear project at Snap Lake. It looks like it is going to be required to divert very little water. It is going to be labour intensive and leave a very small footprint.

But I am wondering if the Premier can commit to taking a proactive approach to this project and others, and assign a Minister to these files before we run into problems?

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would just like to then thank the Minister for looking into this internally to see what the department could do. I think we have a serious problem here when our constituents have to be out of pocket for money we know they will be reimbursed for. I would like to thank the Minister very much for looking into this.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Given that the Minister has mentioned that this can be hundreds of dollars per month and that there is a delay, would the Minister commit to working with the Northwest Territories Pharmacy Association to look at how to best deal with this matter? This may include online billing. I am wondering if she will commit to work with the Northwest Territories Pharmacy Association. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In my Member's statement today, I outlined the concerns that were brought to my attention regarding the reimbursement of extended health benefit expenses. I indicated that this was not only a problem for the constituents of Yellowknife South, but for all residents of the North who are eligible for extended health benefit coverage.

However, it is apparent that this problem is specific to persons who have other insurance plans, and who do not have 100 percent payment coverage. I would like to follow up with the Minister responsible for Health and Social Services on this matter.

Could the Minister advise this House if she is aware of the financial problem constituents with other insurance benefits face when purchasing prescription drugs? Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Some of my constituents have brought a serious concern to my attention. Hopefully this Assembly, with the cooperation of the department, will be able to address the issue.

Mr. Speaker, I am referring to the current manner in which patients in the North are reimbursed under the Extended Health Benefits Program run by the Department of Health. Specifically there is inconsistency in how Northerners are reimbursed or pay for medications.

Patients who qualify for extended health benefits for specified illnesses are able to receive 100 percent payment for their prescription medications. Under this plan, the pharmacist direct bills the Department of Health and Social Services for the entire amount. This seems to work well.

Problems arise for people who already have some other form of partial coverage but who rely on extended health benefits to top up their coverage. In this scenario, the pharmacist direct bills the initial insurance policy but requires immediate payment for the amount covered by extended health. It is up to the patient to pay this amount and then apply to the GNWT for reimbursement. For example, a GNWT employee who has 80 percent coverage under their main plan and 20 percent coverage from extended health must pay the 20 percent out of pocket.

Mr. Speaker, the 20 percent outlay may seem relatively minor to some of us but considering the expense of prescription drugs used to combat something like multiple sclerosis, this 20 percent can be anywhere from hundreds to thousands of dollars.

Mr. Speaker, I believe this government should have on-line billing implemented for extended health benefits which would improve tracking and payment and ensure our constituents are not out of pocket for a substantial amount of money each month.

At the appropriate time, I will be questioning the Minister responsible for Health to see if she is willing to look at correcting this serious shortfall in service.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I have some concern. We know some of this will be seen in the first four months. When we come back and talk about the fact that projected forced growth comes in at $5 million less than we anticipated, and health tells us they have $5 million worth of growth that has not been identified in the interim yet, it is of some concern. I am wondering if he could just assure me that the amount Health did not report is not the $5 million gain we have made up. . Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you for that reassurance. I think when we went through the interim appropriation for health, the break out showed while they factored in the superannuation additional costs to the Government of the Northwest Territories taking over the pensions, they had not identified other forms of forced growth. Our committee specifically asked the question, is there other forced growth involved this year you have anticipated? Do you know what that amount is and have you identified that in the interim? The response was that yes, there is additional forced growth, some $5 million. We submitted that, but it was not identified in the interim. I am wondering if the Minister could clarify.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Just some quick comments on the Minister's opening remarks. We have now heard, and heard again here today, that the picture is a little better than we first thought. We now seem to have $19 million on the upside. I think this was made up a few different ways. The Minister has explained that we have seen an improved revenue picture. We have also had to defer some capital projects which, although very important, did not make it to the top of the priority list and were seen to be sort of less important than some of these other capital projects, so it had to be put on the back burner for probably next year.

We have also seen that we have $5 million less in forced growth that came back for the departments for the next fiscal year. That looks a little better. My concern is that I am wondering if it is possible that some of the departments did not factor in their forced growth. This would have attributed partially to the result of less forced growth coming out here in the interim, and less in the projections for the year.

When we talk about this $19 million worth of room, I am concerned that not all factors were looked at. That in fact some departments were late in reporting some of these numbers, which may dip into this slightly brighter picture. I am wondering if the Minister can give us assurances that was not the case. Thank you.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to table a letter to myself from the acting conflict of interest commissioner regarding an interpretation of Section 79 of the Legislative Assembly and Executive Council Act. Thank you.