Canada's Bill C-51

An Act to amend the Food and Drugs Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts

Proposed legislation currently before Parliament could potenially have a major impact on natural health in Canada and restrict the choices Canadian people have when it comes to health products.

Member bulletin summarizing Bill C51 from the Canadian Health Food Association:

WHAT IS BILL C-51?  THE FACTS

• FACT: Legislation tabled April 8 , 2008 by the federal government that proposes amendments to the Food & Drugs Act
• FACT: Potential significant negative impact on the natural health products and foods industries.  Currently, it does not affect the implementation or enforcement of the NHP Regulations
• FACT: Proposes new increased enforcement powers, increased penalties
to all sectors of the industry including retailers
• FACT: Redefines natural health products, medical devices and cells, tissues & organs as "therapeutic products"
• FACT: The current Bill does NOT remove products from your shelves
• FACT: We have to work together for change NOW; we need a SEPARATE Category for Natural Health Products

 

WHY SHOULD YOU CARE?

• A third category, as promised in the 1998 Standing Committee on Health's Report, is critical at this time
• We want our products to stay on store shelves; we need to work together
• Bill C-51 pushes natural health products closer to the pharmaceutical model
• Potential for limited product availability due to increased powers for inspectors to enforce the regulations and achieve compliance
• Increased penalties for non-compliance; monetary penalties are the same whether you are a small retail operation or a large multi-national
• There are many potential negative issues around Bill C-51; we need a clear understanding oaf the implications to our industry.

More info from Draft Discussion Paper - Legal Review [PDF - 72k] by Shawn Buckley, president of the NHPPA:

What the Act does: the Act gives broad power and responsibility to Health Canada inspectors to force “regulated persons” to take whatever measures the inspectors deem necessary to ensure safety. I am troubled by this due to the following scenario developing:

1) currently roughly 60% of natural health product license applications are failing. The majority of these license applications are for single ingredient products which are easier to licence then multi-ingredient products. The percentage of failed license applications is expected to increase as more multi-ingredient product license applications are considered. My estimate is an overall failure rate of 70%. This means that over 60% of the natural health products on the market will fail the licensing process and will become illegal. At that point the manufacturer can wilfully withdraw them from the market or Health Canada can take enforcement action;

2) the NHPD has been given more resources to process license applications which means that the majority of the products will become illegal sooner rather than later;

3) Health Canada is currently going to universities to recruit university graduates as inspectors because Health Canada anticipates an increased need for enforcement, and

4) Bill C-51 gives inspectors new powers to force products off of the market.

Aviva is your resource for health information. Please check back here as more information on Bill C-51 becomes available:

• Read Bill C-51 or download the print-version PDF [344kb].

• Contact your Member of Parliament. 

• Read Mike Adams' C51 analysis at Natural News.

• Trojan Horse Legislation Sponsored by Big Pharma: "Canadians need to wake up and see what type of Bills that the Harper Conservative government is trying to introduce and bring into law in Canada."

• Canada's C-51: Trojan Horse Legislation Sponsored by Big Pharma -- Bill C-51 Unlawfully Suppresses Canadian Citizens' Rights and Freedoms -- Educate Yourself

Bill C-51 will:

• Remove democratic oversight, bypassing elected officials to vote in laws and allow bureaucrats to adopt laws from other countries without our consent.

• Remove 70% of Natural Health Products from Canadians and many others will be available by prescription only.

• Restrict research and development of safe natural alternatives in favor of high risk drugs.

• Punish Canadians with little or no opportunity for protection or recourse for simply speaking about or giving a natural product without the approval of government. More than 70% of people in Canada use a Natural Health Product. The new law goes so far as to warrant action against a person who would give another person an unapproved amount of garlic on the recommendation that it would improve that persons health.

• It's your right to choose your health products and therapies -- Stop government from enforcing U.S. law and other jurisdictions upon Canadians without consent -- Stop C-51.