I sympathise with those whose medication may be unavailable after the Therapeutic Products Bill passes. We are told that natural health products have unproven efficacy. This is a red herring, as individual circumstances differ. Many prescription meds have not worked on me, while natural health products have (and vice-versa).
Natural health efficacy is often not proven simply because it cannot rely on patents to pay for the trials. This presents a huge imbalance not addressed by the proposed bill. I, the consumer, can tell if a product works or not. Just as Theresa Zame (‘Miracle’ drug Plea, April 4) knows her cancer treatment is helpful.
Side-effects are often harder to pinpoint, but those from prescribed meds are often not trivial. The most resourced voices talk down patented med side-effects and talk up natural health side-effects. There are many examples of this. I had the opportunity to speak to Kiri Allan, but she cancelled.
I, too, am concerned about losing access to meds I know work.
Alexis Copland
