An Open Letter to PM Justin Trudeau from Medicare For Autism Now!

Photo by Harold L Doherty

From: David Marley [mailto:domarley52@gmail.com]
Sent: June 13, 2017 11:23 PM
To: Justin Trudeau (pm@pm.gc.ca)
Subject: MEDICARE for Canadians living with autism spectrum disorder

Medicare for autism Now! Society

Suite No. 425, 1489 Marine Drive

West Vancouver, BC

V7T 1B8

June 13, 2017

Rt. Hon. Justin Trudeau, PC, MP                                                                         

House of Commons,

Ottawa, ONT.

K1A 0A9                                                                                                               

Dear Prime Minister:

Re: MEDICARE coverage for Canadians living with autism spectrum disorder.

Further to our letter, of April 2nd last (Autism Awareness Day), we write to congratulate the Government of Canada on recently having done the right thing in defeating an Opposition motion calling for the provision of $19 million in taxpayers’ money to the Canadian Autism Partnership Project (“CAPP”).

Further funding of the CAPP would have meant little more than allowing the continuation of a thinly-veiled make work project for under-employed NGO bureaucrats.  The CAPP is an exercise in the waste of money and time, something which has done and would have continued to do absolutely nothing of value for the thousands of Canadians living with autism spectrum disorder and their struggling, often emotionally and financially desperate, families.

We again urge the Government of Canada to take action now to ensure the provision of MEDICARE coverage for the science-based treatment, Applied Behavioural Analysis, of autism spectrum disorder by implementing the priority health-care policy resolution (copy attached for reference) that was passed enthusiastically and overwhelmingly by delegates to the Liberal Party of Canada’s national convention, held in Winnipeg just over one year ago.

Our organization has been actively involved with advocacy respecting this matter for more than a decade. We are ready and willing to participate in the effort to implement this resolution.

Yours sincerely,

Jean Lewis,                                        David Marley,

Director, MFAN                                  Director, MFAN

Jean.lewis@telus.net                        domarley52@gmail.com

www.medicareforautismnow.org