OTTAWA — The federal New Democrats are urging the Liberal government to move quickly to complete expansion of the dental care program and start signing deals with the provinces and territories to begin pharmacare coverage.
Health Minister Mark Holland is meeting with provincial and territorial health ministers in Halifax this week.
"Minister, now is the time to act on your promises before the moment is lost," NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and health critic Peter Julian said in a letter to Holland on Wednesday.
The national pharmacare bill, which became law on Oct. 10, calls for the federal government to sign deals with provinces and territories to start funding coverage of birth control and diabetes medications while a study of a universal pharmacare program is underway.
The NDP is also calling on the Liberals to complete the expansion of the dental care program, something the party says is nearly a month overdue.
The final phase would open the dental care program to all uninsured adults with a household income of less than $90,000 a year — an estimated nine million people. Funding was included in the last two federal budgets.
"All that seems to be lacking is the political will," Julian said in an interview.
He called dental care "the most successful new federal program in decades," citing the more than 1.3 million people who have made claims under the program so far. It's currently open to children under 18, adults with disabilities and seniors who meet the program criteria.
Pharmacare and dental care were key parts of the supply-and-confidence deal that saw the NDP keep the minority Liberal government in power from 2022 until last fall.
A federal election is widely expected this spring. The new Liberal leader, who will be chosen on March 9, could call one, or the opposition parties could make good on their threat to bring down the minority government after Parliament resumes on March 24.
It's not clear what will happen to the two programs after an election.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, whose party has been leading in the polls for over a year, has said he would scrap pharmacare and has not committed to funding dental care.
Dental care was launched in 2023 with a budget of $13 billion over five years. Pharmacare is budgeted at $1.5 billion over five years but a full, universal insurance program would cost an additional $11.2 billion a year, according to the parliamentary budget officer.
With a leadership race underway, it's also not clear whether the Liberals remain committed to both programs.
Leadership candidate Mark Carney has said he would continue dental care but has not stated a position on the fledgling pharmacare program. He has promised to balance the federal budget.
Chrystia Freeland — Carney's main rival in the race, according to polls — introduced budgets to fund both programs as federal finance minister. Her campaign team said she was proud of the programs and "looks forward to rolling out national dental care, as well as access to free contraception and diabetes medication."
Carney's campaign team did not answer questions about the programs on Wednesday. Neither did the team for Karina Gould, the former government House leader.
Julian said an NDP government would keep both programs.
"I would expect the Liberal party contestants to support something that receives such overwhelming support from the Canadian population," he said.
Asked about the possibility that the Liberals could hold up the expansion in order to campaign on both programs, Julian said he believes that would "backfire on them."
Holland has said he hoped to have bilateral deals signed by this spring to begin implementation of the pharmacare program's first phase. So far, B.C. has signed a memorandum of understanding with the federal government.
Manitoba already covers the cost of contraceptives and New Brunswick's government has pledged to do the same.
Health Canada officials are in contact with the provinces and territories, a spokesperson for Holland's office said.
When asked about the status of negotiations earlier this month, spokespeople for the health ministers in Ontario and Alberta said the federal government has not given them details about how the pharmacare program would work.
"Without meaningful consultation and true collaboration, Alberta will continue to call on the federal government to provide predictable, sustainable, unconditional health funding that aligns with provincial and territorial priorities, and respects our exclusive jurisdiction over the planning, organization, and management of our health care systems," said a spokesperson for Alberta Health Minister Adriana LaGrange.
Quebec, which has its own prescription drug insurance program, said it's waiting to see a draft agreement that would compensate the province for what it already covers.
Other provinces and territories said more discussion is needed to understand how the new program would affect existing coverage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 29, 2025.
Sarah Ritchie, The Canadian Press