QUESTION PERIOD — Health
Medical Licensure
June 10, 2025
Senator Gold, congratulations on your upcoming retirement.
I was pleased to see that Bill C-5 addresses labour mobility in Canada so that someone who is certified or licensed to perform specific skilled work in a province or territory and who wants to take on a job doing the same work for a federally regulated project would be deemed to have met that federal standard. Unfortunately, the situation is different for health care professionals, who are regulated by the provinces and territories but have fewer options to work on federally regulated health care projects. The government’s election platform promised to protect public health care by addressing labour mobility issues through the implementation of pan-Canadian licensure.
Senator Gold, can you fill us in on the government’s plan to implement pan-Canadian licensure for health care professionals?
Thank you for your question and for reminding us that this is a complex area in our federation.
I don’t have details on that. However, we in the Senate will be addressing the issues within Bill C-5 — I hope soon — and I believe we will have the opportunity at that moment to ask those questions directly of ministers and officials who are seized with this issue.
Senator Gold, I was at a conference recently and had an opportunity to speak directly to specialist physicians, and they were concerned that the wait times to see them for an initial consultation is now two to three times longer than what it was a few years ago. Canadians are also worried about long wait times, no family doctors and the sustainability of the health care system.
Would you please pass along the message that Canada’s public health care system should also be a national priority project?
I certainly will, but, as colleagues know, the federal government has invested significantly in health care for some years, and I know that this Prime Minister has committed to maintaining the funding going forward. This is a subject of great importance and ongoing discussion amongst first ministers and health ministers.
