'Trolling for conflict': Federal health minister says Alberta premier playing politics on dental care
CBC
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith's announcement that the province will opt out of the federal government's dental care plan by 2026 has elicited a sharp response from the federal health minister.
"I think this is politics. And it's too bad, because this is about people's well-being," Mark Holland said Wednesday afternoon on CBC's Power and Politics.
"It seems to be trolling for conflict, and I don't think that's helpful."
In a Tuesday letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Smith announced the province's intention to pull out of the program, saying it infringes on provincial jurisdiction.
She said she wants to negotiate getting Alberta's share of the federal funding in order for the province to expand dental care coverage as it sees fit.
"Alberta has long maintained that it would be more effective to expand existing provincial programs than to introduce a new federal plan," Smith wrote in the letter, saying that about half a million Albertans already benefit from provincial coverage.
Asked to react to Holland's comments at a news conference on Wednesday, Smith didn't specifically respond to the minister but said the federal plan was brought in with no provincial consultation and essentially duplicates the coverage already available in Alberta.
"We have one of the best dental coverage plans in the country," said Smith.
"I don't think there's any point in having a parallel program, and they should have consulted with us, quite frankly."
Holland said he is willing to work with Alberta on improvements to the federal program, which he describes as "incredibly successful."
"Providers are loving it. They're signing up in droves. They're finding it easier to use than private insurance. They're finding it far easier to use than any provincial program they've participated in," he said.
But he says that he'd like to see the focus shifted from "politics" to "results."
"I would say to Premier Smith, work with us, you know, don't seek the conflict, seek the solution," said Holland.
Alberta Health Minister Adriana LaGrange's office said in a statement that the Canadian Dental Care Plan duplicates coverage provided by Alberta's low-income dental programs.
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