Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, non-insured health benefits are meant to reduce barriers to care for Indigenous peoples, but today in the Northwest Territories this federal program is not meeting the needs of the people it is meant to serve. The GNWT administers NIHB on behalf of Indigenous Services Canada, yet ISC continues to underfund this program, leaving our territorial health system to subsidize a federal responsibility.
Mr. Speaker, it is like asking a small mom and pop shop to cover the costs of a billion-dollar corporation. It simply isn't fair, and it is not sustainable.
Mr. Speaker, these shortfalls place growing strain on our system which cannot continue to cover the gap indefinitely. I have travelled with Cabinet and the Council of Leaders to Ottawa, and I have seen firsthand how strongly the Minister of health and her Indigenous government partners have pushed for ISC to address these chronic issues. The message has been clear: The federal government must fund its own program properly so Northerners are not left behind.
Mr. Speaker, we also know what happens if NIHB is handed back to the federal government to administer themselves. Services get slower, barriers increase, and patients and families must pay upfront and seek reimbursement for every medical trip. This is not what we want for NWT residents. But unless ISC steps up, we risk being forced down that path. Meanwhile, Mr. Speaker, we continue to face rigidity and administration barriers for escort criteria. This leaves families to apply for exceptions and wait for answers whenever their situation doesn't fit rigid outdated policies created in Ottawa, and every time a person is sent by air ambulance, one of the most frightening and vulnerable moments in anyone's life, families are again forced to apply for an exemption to be with their loved one with no guarantee of approval. At the moment when these patients need support the most, Mr. Speaker, NIHB makes them prove it.
Mr. Speaker, Indigenous residents deserve dignity, compassion, and timely care. I call on Indigenous Services Canada to fix these systemic issues, to work with our GNWT to modernize these policies, and properly fund NIHB so that people in our territory receive the fair and respectful service they deserve. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
Thank you, Member from Inuvik Boot Lake. Members' statements. Member from Range Lake.
