Susan Leblanc pushes government to commit to free birth control for all in N.S.

SUSAN LEBLANC: My question is for the Minister of Health and Wellness. For many Nova Scotians, the cost of birth control prevents them from accessing this basic form of health care. It’s estimated that one in three Nova Scotian workers do not have health benefits, and not all benefit plans offer equal coverage of the care. Insufficient access to birth control leads to worsened health, well-being, and socio-economic outcomes for patients, families, and communities. The minister has worked extensively as a health care provider. Does she find it acceptable that so many Nova Scotians can’t access this important medication?

HON. MICHELLE THOMPSON: Certainly, we’re looking at universal birth control over the last number of months. We know that there are a number of people, through Family Pharmacare, who can access birth control, providing that there is a medication component. I certainly know in the instance of IUDs, in order for those to be covered under Family Pharmacare, there does need to be a medicinal and hormonal component to that. We continue to look at ways to support Nova Scotians. We also know that through the Department of Community Services, as well, there’s free birth control available to those who meet the criteria. We are working all the time to cover things that are important to Nova Scotians, and we’ll continue to do that review.

SUSAN LEBLANC: The minister will know that there are gaps in providing contraception. Earlier this year, British Columbia became the first province to provide access to free prescription contraception.Nova Scotia needs to follow suit. It’s estimated that for every dollar spent on contraception access, there’s up to $90 in public savings. The Access Now Nova Scotia Coalition has called on government to urgently address this issue, supported by organizations like the Pharmacy Association of Nova Scotia, the Nova Scotia College of Family Physicians, the Dalhousie Department of Pediatrics, the Dalhousie Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, the North End Community Health Centre, and many others. I will table that list. Will the minister commit to ensuring that every Nova Scotian has access to no-cost contraception?

MICHELLE THOMPSON: Our Pharmacare Program is under incredible pressure, as we all know. Not only do we have advancing technologies and therapies, but we also know the costs of drugs are going up. As a department, we continue to look at what we’re best able to supply to Nova Scotians. We want to make sure we have things that are accessible to them and that are needed. There are always competing priorities, and we will continue to balance and look at those over the coming months. We will do what we can to support Nova Scotians.

Endometriosis Awareness Month - March 28, 2023 Members Statement

Mr. Speaker, as my honourable colleague has just said, March is Endometriosis Awareness Month. I rise today to call on this House to prioritize funding for reproductive health care and endometriosis care in Nova Scotia. Reproductive health care and health care specific to people with uteruses is often not taken as seriously as it should be. This is especially the case when it comes to menstruation and the pain that comes with it. In Canada, one million people - 1 in 10 women and an unknown number of transgender and gender nonconforming people - live with endometriosis. This is a gynecological condition where tissue grows outside the uterus. Endometriosis symptoms include severe menstrual pain, chronic pelvic pain, and infertility. Many spend years trying to get an accurate diagnosis so that they can get proper treatment. Sometimes these folks are told that this excruciating pain is normal, but it is anything but. Symptoms are managed using a combination of medical and surgical care. I call on this government to prioritize the health care for people with uteruses and ensure that we have the specialists and funding necessary to address endometriosis in our province. (Applause)

Need for Midwifery Investment

SUSAN LEBLANC: My question is for the Minister of Health and Wellness. Nova Scotians have been asking government for years to invest in more midwifery services across the province. There is still zero service in Cape Breton and the Valley. Midwives in the region have been working on establishing an education program, which is a key piece of the puzzle, and they have asked for a study on how to make it happen. FOIPOP documents from the minister’s department show the process was moving along nicely until it was squashed at the last minute from the very top decision-makers. I can table that. Can the minister explain why her government is so resistant to supporting midwives and new parents that they won’t even undertake a simple study asked for by midwives across the region?

HON. MICHELLE THOMPSON: Just to let the member know, we’re currently focusing on stabilizing our current midwifery services across the province. There are some issues around recruitment and retention. I also want to make note that we do have an unattached baby clinic. Certainly, the midwives in this province have been instrumental in supporting that. We are using midwives to the best of our scope, but currently, the focus is on stabilizing current midwifery services.

SUSAN LEBLANC: Perhaps we’ll have a chance to talk about retention in Estimates, but after this government tabled its budget last week, speaking of Estimates, our caucus heard from midwives and health advocates who were heartbroken that another budget has been tabled with no new investment in midwifery, including no new midwifery services in Cape Breton, where there was the highest rate of C-sections in low-risk pregnancies in the province between 2017 and 2020. C-sections are the most common kind of surgery, and midwives can help lower these rates and free up hospital resources, but we have to invest in them. If this government will spend whatever it takes to fix health care, why does it continue to refuse to implement the sensible and affordable suggestion to invest in primary care that will benefit pregnant people and free up other primary care providers in this system?

MICHELLE THOMPSON: Certainly, this has been a historic budget in terms of our investment in health care- More, Faster. We certainly are committed to improving primary care access, and again, we go back to the fact that we need to stabilize our current services before we spread ourselves too thin and make the program not available to anyone.