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Health

In question period, the Conservative health critic asked about the cancelled PrescribeIT e-prescribing program, saying it cost taxpayers $300 million despite low usage, that its CEO received high pay and a bonus, and that ministers should take responsibility. The parliamentary secretary replied that the program was launched by the previous government with the aim of becoming self-funded, that uptake did not meet expectations, and that the government redirected funding toward other digital health priorities. Conservatives also accused the government of blocking study of the matter at the health committee and asked that the block end; the government said it is refocusing health spending toward national health data standards. No other members spoke on the topic in the sampled exchanges.Written by AI from the debate. Updated .

Official text

6 statements

Michael Cooper

Conservative

Linked statement

“The government spent $300 million on a prescription program that nobody used and then cancelled it. The head of the program was paid $1 million a year, plus a $215,000 bonus. I want the health minister to take responsibility for this wasted money.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, the Liberal’s PrescribeIT program has been a total debacle, costing taxpayers $300 million for a program that effectively no one used and that the government has since been forced to cancel. We have learned that the CEO of the program was being paid $1 million a year, including pocketing a $215,000 bonus. This happened under the health minister’s watch. Will she accept responsibility for this latest outrageous abuse of taxpayer dollars?

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Maggie Chi

Liberal
“The previous government started the PrescribeIT program, and it was supposed to pay for itself. Not enough people used it, so we stopped funding it to spend the money in better ways.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, PrescribeIT was launched by the previous government in 2017 in consultation with provinces and territories. The program was always intended to become self-funded over time. When it became clear that it was not having the expected uptake and there was no path toward financial sustainability, our new government made the responsible decision to end funding to the program and redirect resources to make sure we maximize benefits for all Canadians.

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Michael Cooper

Conservative
“The minister let $300 million of public money be wasted, and executives got large bonuses. I want to know who else got that money.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, the previous government is the same old Liberal government, and the buck stops with the minister. However, the minister has admitted that she asked no questions as 300 million tax dollars went up in smoke. In addition to the CEO, several other executives were paid handsomely and walked away with $60,000- and $70,000-bonuses. Who else got rich while taxpayers got hosed as the minister was asleep at the switch?

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Maggie Chi

Liberal
“The digital prescription program was not being used enough, and provinces asked us to change it. So, we stopped funding it and are moving that money to other programs that help more people.”

  • Government answer in Question Period

    Relevance 47 of 100

    None of this answer addressed the specific question that was asked.

    See full analysis
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, I will reiterate that the program was intended for pharmacies and clinicians to do e-prescribing. After consultation with and requests from provinces and territories, when it became clear that the uptake was not there, our new government decided to end the funding to the program and redirect resources to make sure that it benefits all Canadians.

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Burton Bailey

Conservative
“The Liberals are blocking the health committee from investigating a failed 300-million-dollar prescription program. They want to give that same group more money. I want the Liberals to stop blocking the committee so we can get answers.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, it is week three of Liberal obstruction at the health committee on the $300-million prescribeIT scandal. The Liberals are desperately shielding their buddies and covering up a decade-long disaster of failed programs that did not fill prescriptions but padded the pockets of Liberal insiders. Now the Liberals want to reward failure by giving Canada Health Infoway even more cash to blow in the future. Canadians are done with the Liberal money-laundering schemes. When will the Liberals end the obstruction so Conservatives can get accountability for Canadians?

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Maggie Chi

Liberal
“We are changing how we spend money on digital health care. We want to set national rules for health data so our partners can build better health systems for Canadians.”

  • Government answer in Question Period

    Relevance 46 of 100

    None of this answer addressed the specific question that was asked.

    See full analysis

  • A repeated line

    “Faster and more effectively for all Canadians.”

    Said 3 times by 2 members since May 1.

    Every time it was said
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, Canada’s new government was elected with a clear mandate to ensure that programs and policies are delivered smarter, faster and more effectively for all Canadians. We are refocusing our spending and Canada Health Infoway’s mandate so we can support the development of national health data standards while allowing our health sector partners to deliver solutions that work for all Canadians.

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