The Manitoba government announced the first steps Thursday toward eliminating paper health cards.
Funding will be set aside in the upcoming provincial budget for plastic cards, which will replace the longstanding paper ones — an important first step toward a fully digital system that will eventually allow Manitobans more direct access to their own health records.
Premier Wab Kinew made the promise last fall on the 680 CJOB leaders’ debate ahead of the provincial election.
“We’re going to bring in electronic medical records, and we’re going to do it for you, the patient,” Kinew said during the debate.
“In almost every other jurisdiction, when you go and get a test done, within an hour or so, once the test is processed, you can access your test results on your phone.
“Here in Manitoba, you’re waiting for a week, two weeks. You’ve got to get a follow-up appointment. … You’re not allowed to see your own health information.”
Kinew said Thursday that the province expects to deliver on modernized plastic and digital options by next year, and that the application process will be streamlined to make it easier for Manitobans to apply for a new card or make changes to an existing one.
The move effectively eliminates ongoing struggles with a backlog that once left as many as 24,000 Manitobans waiting to receive paper cards. A provincial spokesperson told Global Winnipeg there is now a two-week turnaround.
— with files from Richard Cloutier