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Yvonne Jones, Opposition Health and Community Services Critic and MHA for
the District of Cartwright-L’Anse au Clair, says she is disappointed that
government did not support a Private Members Motion presented this afternoon
in the House of Assembly regarding a national catastrophic drug program.
"With this motion government had an opportunity to symbolically support the
people of the province who require and find it difficult to afford
catastrophic drugs," says Ms. Jones. "In this year’s budget, government did
little to provide financial support to deal with the costs facing Multiple
Sclerosis and Arthritis patients. Today, they once again turned their back
on these individuals.
"Individuals suffering from Multiple Sclerosis and Arthritis have
demonstrated the hardships that their drug costs are having on their lives.
People in this province should not have to sacrifice everything they own and
worked for throughout their lives to pay for their medication. Individuals
on social assistance and with drug cards are the only people who receive
support from government. There are 1,030 people in the province diagnosed
with MS, only 400 of them actually receive the therapies that are
prescribed. The rest cannot afford the cost. There are 600 people in our
province who cannot afford these drugs which cost anywhere from $17,000 to
$28,000 annually.
"In addition, there are 150 people suffering from psoriatic arthritis who
are going without medication. The costs associated with these drugs are just
too high for some people to afford. In our society it is unfortunate that
government would refuse assistance for people who require prescribed drug
therapies.
"This country urgently needs a national catastrophic drug plan. I would
have expected our government to stand up and fight for this program and make
it a top priority. Unfortunately, many people will continue to struggle to
pay for their drugs or will continue to go without them for the foreseeable
future because this government refuses to advocate on their behalf."
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