The document summarizes the federal parties' stances on health and oncology policy based on their responses to questions from the Canadian Cancer Survivor Network (CCSN). The Conservative Party had not yet provided any answers. The Liberal Party, NDP, and Bloc Quebecois provided responses supporting expanding employment insurance sickness benefits, improving access to disability benefits, and working with provinces on a national pharmacare program. The Liberal Party and NDP emphasized increasing healthcare funding and leadership. The Green Party had not yet responded.

1. Federal Parties Stances
on Health and Oncology Policy
October 15, 2015

2. Webinar Overview
• Introductions
• Welcome to Guest Respondents
– Colleen Savage, CEO, Cancer Advocacy Coalition of Canada
– Kathy Barnard, President, Save Your Skin Foundation
• Review of Federal Party Health Care Platforms
• Review of CCSN Questionnaire
• Analysis of Party Responses
• Discussion with Respondents
• Questions from Audience
• Conclusion
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3. Conservative Party’s Health Care Promises
• Renew a 5-year mandate with the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer (CPAC)
which would receive $50 M a year starting 2017
• $4 M for next two years to the BC Cancer Prevention Research Centre
• Will provide capital funding to help establish the Canadian Cancer Society’s
Cancer Prevention Centre, in conjunction with other levels of government and
donors.
• Continuing work on bill C-17 “Vanessa’s Law”
– Will impose a more comprehensive, standardized reporting regime when documenting
adverse-drug reactions on health care institutions
• Supporting critical research on health issues such as cancer and diseases that
affect the brain
• Establish an expert panel to study the potential scope of the Adult Fitness Tax
Credit, to support Canadians of all ages in making healthy and active choices
• Increasing aboriginal health funding by 31%
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4. Liberal Party’s Health Care Promises
• Engagement of a federal/provincial partnership to tackle health issues (meet
with Premiers to discuss health care)
• Renew the Health Accord with the provinces, reach long-term agreement on
health care funding
• Address the affordability of prescription medications. Increase access and
reduce costs of prescriptions by buying in bulk
• Increase health spending by $3 billion during the next four years in order to
provide additional and improved services for the nearly two million people
currently receiving care at home
• Place significant emphasis on the construction of new affordable housing for
seniors and seniors' facilities, including long-term care homes
• Fully restore the Interim Federal Health Program that provides limited and
temporary health benefits to refugees and refugee claimants
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5. NDP’s Health Care Promises
• Return to the previous growth formula for Canada Health Transfers (CHTs) – to 6% of GDP
• Establish a new Health Accord would be top priority during first two years
• Working with the provinces and territories to develop universal public medication coverage
– $2.6 billion during the next four years
– Aim for a 30% average reduction in the cost of prescriptions through bulk purchasing programs
– Streamlining the medication review and listing process
• Set up a $100 million, four-year mental health innovation fund for children and youth
• $40 million commitment for a national strategy on Alzheimer’s disease and dementia
• $500 million to build medical clinics and hire more health care professionals
• “Families should never have to choose between the necessities of life and prescription
drugs. Those living with cancer should not have to mortgage their homes in order to afford
the drugs they need” (text from NDP’s platform)
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6. Green Party’s Health Care Promises
• Expand health care to cover prescription medication for all Canadians
– implement a National Pharmacare Plan expected to save Cdns $11 billion each year
– more rigorous in assessment of new drug applications - build on the work of the Therapeutics
Initiative at UBC to ensure the gold standard of review for new medications before they are approved
– establish a federal Crown corporation to bulk buy prescription medication to drive down the
cost to provinces
• Expand public dental coverage for low-income youth (under 18 years of age)
• Will work with the provinces to develop preventative health care guidelines that
incentivize active lifestyles and healthy diets, saving our system millions by keeping
Canadians healthy from childhood onwards
• Will ensure the National Conference on Lyme Disease, required by law in the Green
Party’s first bill, will develop a national strategy to confront this growing threat
– scheduled for November to be chaired by the federal Minister of Health
• Supports the establishment of a national seniors strategy (includes a national dementia
strategy)
• Increase the Canada Health Transfer to account for the age of a province's population
and ensure equity across the country
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7. Bloc Québécois’s Health Care Promises
• Re-establish the previous formula for the increases to the CHT – to 6% per
year
• Address health issues related to the aging of the population
• Keep the federal health department from interfering in the opening of
supervised injection sites in Montreal
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8. CCSN’s Question #1
Question 1: Employment Insurance Sickness Benefits
The Employment Insurance Program in Canada offers temporary financial assistance to unemployed
workers. This assistance includes providing sickness benefits to employees unable to work because of
sickness, injury or quarantine and who would otherwise be available to work, with sickness benefits up
to a maximum of 15 weeks. However, most cancer patients spend more than 15 weeks receiving or
recovering from cancer treatment.
If elected, will your government:
A. Recognize that there is a need for a new process that recognizes that some patients, including
cancer patients, experience extended periods of treatment and recovery, and hold open
consultations with Canadians about how this process will be developed and implemented?
B. Use the results of these consultations to lengthen sickness benefits for Canadians undergoing
treatment for cancer as well as other serious illnesses that require long periods of treatment or
recovery so that Canadians who are ill are not penalized by the current limit of 15 weeks of sickness
benefits?
C. Cancel the two-week waiting period for EI Sickness Benefits so that sick Canadians are not
penalized?
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9. CCSN’s Question #2
Question 2: Canada Pension Plan Disability Benefits
The Canada Pension Plan (CPP) Disability Benefit is a taxable monthly payment that is available to
people who have contributed to the CPP and who are not able to work regularly at any job because of a
disability (http://www.servicecanada.gc.ca/eng/services/pensions/cpp/disability/benefit/). However,
about 60 per cent of CPP disability claimants are initially turned down, one of the highest rejection rates
for a disability insurance program among the nations of the Organization for Economic Co-operation
and Development (OECD). In addition, the new appeal system has still not cleared the backlog of 11,000
cases, resulting in some patients left unable to work but without benefits for years.
If elected, will your government:
A. Conduct an investigation into the reasons why 60 per cent of disability claimants are initially turned
down.
B. Ensure that Canadians are informed about how to properly and successfully apply for CPP Disability
Benefits.
C. Provide the tribunal with the resources it needs to quickly clear the remaining backlog of cases and
ensure that necessary resources are in place to prevent the buildup of backlogs in the future.
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10. CCSN’s Question #3
Question 3: National Pharmacare Program
A new study1 released in July 2015 makes a compelling case for expanding our universal public health
care system to include the cost of prescription medicines. In addition, a recent poll by the Angus Reid
Institute2 found that more than 90 per cent of Canadians back the concept of pharmacare.
If elected, will your government:
A. What is your party’s position on the creation of a national pharmacare program?
B. How will your party ensure that a national pharmacare program will not reduce the number of
prescription medicines available to Canadian patients?
C. Will your party support a new federal equalization payment for national pharmacare so that all
provinces are able to cover the same comprehensive range of prescription drugs, with timely new
additions on a regular basis?
1 The Future of Drug Coverage in Canada, Pharmacare 2020, July 15, 2015
2 Prescription drug access and affordability an issue for nearly a quarter of all Canadian households (July 15, 2015)
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11. CCSN’s Question #4
Question 4: National Healthcare Leadership
How would your party show leadership in work with the provinces and territories on healthcare issues?
A. Would your party modify federal transfers to the provinces so that they are age-adjusted and not
just based on population numbers?
B. Please indicate other ways that your party would show federal leadership on healthcare issues.
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12. Conservative Party’s answers to CCSN’s
election 2015 questions
The Conservative Party of Canada has not yet provided any answers to the
questions posed by the CCSN
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13. Liberal Party’s answers to CCSN’s election
2015 questions
Re: Question 1: Employment Insurance Sickness Benefits
• will reduce the waiting period for EI benefits to one week from two
• end the higher 910-hour eligibility penalty for new workers and those re-entering the
workforce (including those who left due to illness)
• EI processing will be a starting point for our new commitment to higher service
standards in government, including waiting times
• will be committed to ensuring those who need EI benefits can access them quickly
and reliably
• will introduce a more flexible and accessible employment insurance compassionate
care benefit
– change the criteria so that it applies to any Canadian who provides care to a seriously ill
family member and will allow the six month benefit to be claimed in blocks of time over a
year-long period, and by allowing family members to share the six months.
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14. Liberal Party’s answers to CCSN’s election
2015 questions
Re: Question 2: Canada Pension Plan Disability Benefits
• will work to ensure Canadians have timely access to the disability benefits that they
need and have earned and need
• will ensure a higher standard of service, and a better client experience
• will create new performance standards for services offered by the federal
government, including streamlining applications, reducing wait times, and money-
back guarantees
– performance will be independently assessed and publicly reported
• reducing the appeal backlog at the Social Security Tribunal and ensuring it has the
resources required to prevent such backlogs in the future will be a priority
• committed to working with the provinces to phase in a fully funded expansion of the
CPP.
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15. Liberal Party’s answers to CCSN’s election
2015 questions
Re: Question 3: National Pharmacare Program
• committed to meeting with the premiers to talk about how to strengthen health care
by making measurable progress
– will work with the provinces to lower medication costs
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16. Liberal Party’s answers to CCSN’s election
2015 questions
Re: Question 4: National Healthcare Leadership
• will call a federal-provincial meeting to reach a long-term agreement on health care
funding
– will address the following issues: wait times, the affordability of prescription drugs, the
availability of homecare and community-based services, and coping with an aging population
• will make an unprecedented $20 billion investment in social infrastructure over the next
ten years that will fund, among other things, sorely needed affordable housing for
seniors, long-term care infrastructure, and seniors’ facilities.
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17. NDP’s answers to CCSN’s
election 2015 questions
Re: Question 1: Employment Insurance Sickness Benefits
• New Democrats recognize the need to increase the flexibility of federal supports
for persons living with chronic conditions to better accommodate their varying
levels of engagement in the workforce
• will seek to increase work options for persons living with chronic conditions
• $200 million annual investment to expand the definition of who may access the
compassionate care benefits to include non-terminal illnesses
• $1.3 billion investment in improving sickness benefits from 15 weeks to 45 weeks
and making benefits more flexible
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18. NDP’s answers to CCSN’s
election 2015 questions
Re: Question 2: Canada Pension Plan Disability Benefits
• NDP has committed to calling a First Ministers meeting within six months of being
elected to examine the adequacy of the CPP/QPP and to negotiate improvements
with provincial and territorial governments.
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19. NDP’s answers to CCSN’s
election 2015 questions
Re: Question 3: National Pharmacare Program
• will ensure that the affordability of prescription medicines is on the table in our
discussions with provinces and territories as we push for a new national
health accord
• cooperative bulk purchasing and common formulary, for instance, are already
advancing but could improve dramatically with active federal involvement
• lifting these important elements out of provincial silos to a pan-Canadian level will
assure equitable treatment and access to scientifically approved medicines
• will dedicate a further $80 million over four years to improve provincial-federal
capacity for medication reviews, listing, joint pricing negotiations and improving
safety by reducing inappropriate prescribing
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20. NDP’s answers to CCSN’s
election 2015 questions
Re: Question 4: National Healthcare Leadership
• strongly committed to rejuvenating the relationship between the
federal government, provinces and territories overall and in the health portfolio
• will reverse Harper’s unilateral cuts (re: Canada Health Transfer formula)
• respecting provincial roles, we will lead strategies to improve public health care
and make it more sustainable over the long term
• will move quickly to initiate a federal provincial-territorial process to put a new
health accord in place
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21. Green Party’s answers to CCSN’s
election 2015 questions
The Green Party of Canada has not yet provided any answers to the questions
posed by the CCSN
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22. Bloc Québécois’s answers to CCSN’s
election 2015 questions
Re: Question 1: Employment Insurance Sickness Benefits
• proposes to reform the current EI program in depth and that the CCSN’s proposed
solutions to the current program be considered during the consultations and
discussions
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23. Bloc Québécois’s answers to CCSN’s
election 2015 questions
Re: Question 2: Canada Pension Plan Disability Benefits
• will conduct an investigation into the reasons why 60 %of disability claimants are
initially turned down
• will provide the tribunal with the resources it needs to quickly clear the remaining
backlog of cases and ensure that necessary resources are in place to prevent the
buildup of backlogs in the future
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24. Bloc Québécois’s answers to CCSN’s
election 2015 questions
Re: Question 3: National Pharmacare Program
• In their answer to CCSN,the Bloc Québécois (BQ) mentioned that the provincial
Quebec government is responsible for prescription coverage within the province
and therefore the BQ would be limited to what it would do nationally
• the BQ did however mention they would like to see lower prices for brand-name
medications which are currently set by comparing to seven other nations where
brand-name products are the most expensive. BQ would propose to use 13
comparator countries instead, which could help lower the costs by at least 11%,
leading to hundreds of millions of savings for Québec
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25. Bloc Québécois’s answers to CCSN’s
election 2015 questions
Re: Question 4: National Healthcare Leadership
• will reverse the Conservatives’ formula change to the Canada Health Transfer back
to 6% annual increases to help cover at least 25% of the health expenditures in the
province
• would also require that the aging of the population be considered in the renewed
formula
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26. Canadian Cancer Survivor Network
Contact Info
Canadian Cancer Survivor Network
1750 Courtwood Crescent, Suite 210
Ottawa, ON K2C 2B5
Telephone / Téléphone : 613-898-1871
E-mail jmanthorne@survivornet.ca or mforrest@survivornet.ca
Web site www.survivornet.ca
Blog: http://jackiemanthornescancerblog.blogspot.com/
Twitter: @survivornetca
Facebook: www.facebook.com/CanadianSurvivorNet
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/survivornetwork/
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