Photo: Adrian Wyld La Presse canadienne Le chef néodémocrate, Jagmeet Singh
Faced with reluctance from Alberta and the Bloc Québécois regarding the future drug insurance program agreed upon by the Liberals and the NDP, NDP leader Jagmeet Singh accuses the two provinces of neglecting the health care of their populations . At the same time, he described François Legault as “conservative prime minister”.
“I’m not surprised that Conservative prime ministers don’t want to help people who suffer from diabetes,” Mr. Singh said at a press briefing in Ottawa on Monday.
The Liberals and New Democrats agreed on a drug insurance plan on Friday, one week before the deadline to reach an agreement. Jagmeet Singh threatened, in the absence of an agreement, to tear up the agreement which allows Justin Trudeau's minority government to keep power until 2025.
A bill that will establish the foundations of a national drug insurance program will be tabled this week. In the short term, a universal single-payer program will also cover contraception and diabetes medications.
“We have seen horrible situations happening in both provinces because they are premiers who do not want to invest in the well-being of the people. “I’m not surprised they don’t want to invest in life-saving drug coverage,” Singh lamented.
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- The Liberals and the NDP agreed on a drug insurance project
Over the weekend, Alberta's health minister told Global News that the province intended to opt out of the upcoming program and would instead seek financial compensation.
Although the Quebec government has still not commented on the announcement, the leader of the Bloc Québécois, Yves-François Blanchet, already maintains that in the absence of “unconditional” compensation for the province , his party will oppose the bill.
“It is from the outset an interference in Quebec’s areas of jurisdiction to save the Trudeau government,” he declared on Friday.
Negotiations between the federal government and the provinces on coverage of contraceptives and diabetes medications must begin in 2024. Jagmeet Singh assures that Quebec “always has a right to compensation,” but hopes that the program will improve the existing Quebec regime.
The MP and parliamentary leader of the Bloc Québécois, Alain Therrien, indicated Monday that the progress of the negotiations with Quebec would determine the party's support for the bill. “It will depend on how they will accept the fact that Quebec does not have to […] be told what to do in its jurisdictions,” he told journalists on Monday.
Last year, the federal dental care program was received coldly by the Quebec government, which accused Ottawa of encroaching on an area of provincial jurisdiction.
Tax prudence
On Sunday, federal Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland assured that the drug insurance program would not endanger public finances because the federal government intends to respect the rules it established last fall.
The Trudeau government wants to limit deficits to 1% of GDP starting in 2026-2027.
“It’s important to invest to support Canadians and to do so in a fiscally responsible way,” she said at a press briefing in Warsaw, Poland.< /p>
Minister Freeland's comments marked the first time a member of the government commented on the agreement which was made public on Friday.