Health

The committee met to elect a new chair, with Dan Mazier nominating Sukh Dhaliwal. The motion was adopted, and Dhaliwal took the chair, pledging to be fair and firm and noting that health care should be non-partisan.

The committee then turned to its investigation of the PrescribeIT program. Dan Mazier moved a motion requesting that the Auditor General of Canada conduct an audit of PrescribeIT, covering costs, governance, termination, transition, and intellectual property. The motion also called for the Minister of Health, officials from Health Canada, and the Treasury Board Secretariat to appear for at least two hours within two weeks of the motion’s adoption. Mazier noted that witnesses at a prior meeting had given conflicting information and that reported costs had risen from $250 million to potentially $350 million.

Maggie Chi moved that the meeting proceed in camera. After a point of order from Maxime Blanchette-Joncas seeking an explanation, the committee did not resolve the competing motions or reach a decision on the PrescribeIT investigation before the transcript ended.