National Lyme Disease Strategy Act (Bill C-442)

Bryan Hayes: Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Saanich—Gulf Islands for bringing forward this important piece of legislation on behalf of one of my constituents, who suffered for the longest time in terms of finding a diagnosis and then treatment. She was not able to find appropriate treatment in Canada and I believe she went to Mexico three times for treatment.

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In terms of best practices and treatment, is the intent to actually look worldwide and go outside of Canada and the United States to search for the best treatment possible?

Elizabeth May: Mr. Speaker, I want to make a point clearly and this gives me a good opportunity. I am not a medical doctor. A few of us in this House are, but for the most part, I want to make sure that the medical diagnosis and research is left to medical experts, the ministers of health provincially, federally and territorially.

I would think it makes sense to do what my hon. friend suggests. My constituents have gone to the U.S. and Mexico for treatment. I was interviewed this morning by Kamloops CBC where a family is trying to raise money for some treatment in Florida. I do not know what it is.

It is important that as members of Parliament we set up a framework that allows the research to extend to wherever the answers will be found, but that we should not prejudge that. We should make it possible for medical professionals to seek out best practices.

I think a lot of those may be in Canada. We just need to share across provincial and territorial boundaries and perhaps international ones as well.