Bill C-51 In Canada Impacts Natural Health Products And Your Rights

Mr. Clements wants you to believe C51 is protecting you. - But from what?  - Drugs and even peanuts claim lives every year while herbal supplement simply help people be well so they do not need drugs.  C51 endangers your rights, liberties and freedom of choice.

What would you do if your favourite, even essential vitamins, minerals, herbs, homeopathic or nutritional supplements suddenly disappeared?   What if the government chose to ban them?  C51 gives them the power!

Millions of  Canadians rely on natural health products (NHP) for their health and these products are now endangered by Canada's Bill C-51 as are their personal rights & freedoms. Consumers need to act now to save them by voicing their concerns to politicians

As a voting Canadian citizen, you have every right to object strongly to the fact that the proposed natural health product and drug regulations under Bill C-51 are in numerous ways limiting your freedom of choice, and your ability to take care of your own body.  Click here to find out what you can do about C-51 and how  ...

Unlike drugs or even peanuts, natural health products have no significant track record of harm and ZERO deaths in Canada since 1960.  So if people are not being harmed, why is the government so keen to bundle herbs with drugs?

Here are just a few key elements found in C51:

• C-51 EXPOSES CANADIANS TO THE POTENTIAL OF FOREIGN STATE INFLUENCE ON DOMESTIC AFFAIRS:  A significant shift in the term "government" to include foreign states and groups of foreign states and therefore the potential to influence internal Canadian affairs.
• C-51 REDEFINATION OF NHP's AND DRUGS TO 'THERPEUTIC PRODUCT' UNDER NEW TERMINOLOGY: " A radical alteration to key terminology, including replacing the word "drug" and "natural health products" with "therapeutic product" throughout the Act, giving the Canadian government broad-reaching powers to regulate the sale of all herbs, vitamins, supplements and other items.  With this single language change, anything that is "therapeutic" automatically falls under the Food and Drug Act, including natural health products.
• C-51 APPEARS TO LOWER DRUG SAFETY STANDARDS: By shifting the basis of drug approvals from the current Precautionary approach to a Risk Management approach, a Minister can decide, based on secret industry data, that ‘benefits’ outweigh ‘risks’
• C-51 APPEARS TO SPEED UP DRUG APPROVALS: By providing a legal framework for ‘progressive licensing’ of pharmaceuticals with less evidence of safety or effectiveness. Speedy drug approvals have already led to harm (remember Vioxx)
• C-51 ELIMINATES BARRIES FOR DIRECT-TO-CONSUMER ADVERTISING: Suggests the introduction of any kind of prescription drug advertising with new regulations. As in the USA, drug ads give misleading and even harmful information and drive up spending on new drugs that cost more with questionable benefits over existing alternatives.  Patients asking doctors for a new drug prescription? Absurd!
• REDEFINATION OF THE WORD "SELL" TO INCLUDE ANYONE who gives a therapeutic product to someone else. So if you give an herb to your child, under C-51's new language, you could be arrested for engaging in the sale of unregulated, unapproved "therapeutic substances."
• IMPOSED REMOVAL FROM THE MARKET , HALTS AT THE BORDER, LEGAL ACTIONS, ARMED PRESENCE AT A RECENT BC CONFERENCE -if you think that's not possible, think again becasue it is happening and with C51, the minister has unprecedented powers.

Bill C-51 May Be Bad For Your Health Bill C-51 was introduced into the House of Commons on April 8, 2008 by Tony Clement, the Minister of Health . It has NOT passed 2nd reading as of June10, 2008. Why so quite on something that will directly affect every Canadian? What about commitments made to create a distinct category for NHP's years ago?	Warning: Misinformation And Marketing Hype Is Building Negative Media News on NHP Dangers
Not heard of Bill C-51? - Not surprising! From all appearances, this is bill is quietly being fast tracked and many natural health products may soon become extinct. Even today, approvals are few. With Bill C-51, current natural health products and drugs fall under the same definition called "therapeutic products" and so are subject to the same regulations as pharmaceutical drugs. Regardless of any verbal soothing about the threats of C51, C51 is a legal document and will be interpreted by lawyers, not politicians good will statement!	Herbs are still your best bet for a sensible self-care regimen - Dr. James A. Duke Anyone who regularly reads the newspapers, listens to the radio or watches the TV news cannot have escaped the "herbs are dangerous" misinformation campaign orchestrated by what I sometimes call the anti-supplement pro-drug lobby--the "herb interaction drug peddlers." - Dr. James A. Duke READ the "Herb Interaction" Drug Peddlers - Brief Article ... It's well known that till 2006 Minister of Health Tony Clement owned a 25% stake in a Toronto pharmaceutical company!
Bill C-51 certainly appears to set the stage for powerful industry interests to muscle out herbal supplements, vitamins and minerals for purely economic benefits.  The massive pharmaceutical companies would have a sales problem if people were fundamentally well. With C-51, natural and health appear ready to part ways. Many current NHP's may become unlawful and/or suffer business failure due to excessive and overbearing regulation. Under C-51, stiff fines up to $5,000,000  Is it remotely conceivable that the pharmaceutical industry has some influence in the direction of herbs in Canada? Reported In The Montreal Gazette 06-12-06: ... 25-per-cent stake in Prudential Chem Inc. a Toronto mfg of pharmaceutical chemicals  ... UPDATE May 14 2008: We have been contacted by Laryssa Waler, Mr. Clement's Press Secretary who advised us Mr. Clement divested of that holding in 2006.  We now understand the 25% stake was transferred to its founder and president, Mr. Vikram Khurana in 2006. Sun Media Reported - he hired a former campaign aide who now runs an association of online pharmacies. Former MP Lyle MacWilliam says proposed amendments to the Food and Drugs Act are the result of lobbying from big pharmaceutical companies. Read more ...	Death by Pharmaceuticals? - health risks of herbal dietary supplements - Brief Article Dr. Duke gets the real dirt on drugs and herbs The front page of the health section of the March 19th, 2000 Washington Post, read: "Mounting evidence suggests that increasing numbers of Americans are falling seriously ill or even dying after taking dietary supplements [...] The growing health concerns from mass-media articles are being fertilized by trigger-happy journalists, pharmaceutical manufacturers and promoters, and physicians who know so little about herbs, many of them unfamiliar with the statistic from the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) that prescription drugs are killing 140,000 Americans a year. Herbs (usually through abuse or exceeding recommended dosage) are killing fewer than 100 (in the USA). READ HOW Dr. Duke gets the real dirt on drugs and herbs ...   So what are the annual risks from natural health products?  Deaths from herbs In Canada = 0 For comparison and perspective, statistics show that 2,730 Canadians died in traffic accidents in 2004, compared to 622 who were the victims of homicides, The Globe and Mail reports.  If they are not causing deaths, why is there such a heightened degree of unfounded concern and exactly what are citizens being saved from?
ADVERSE DRUG REACTIONS (ADR) MAY CAUSE OVER 100,000 DEATHS AMONG HOSPITALIZED PATIENTS EACH YEAR (1) In 1998 an extensive study published in the reputable Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) showed that 106,000 people die each year in American hospitals from medication side effects. Study suggests adverse drug reactions are among the top causes of death in U.S.  Bruce H. Pomeranz, M.D., Ph.D., and colleagues from the University of Toronto, analyzed 39 studies of ADRs in the United States to estimate the incidence of serious and fatal adverse drug reactions in hospital patients. To obtain overall incidence rates of ADRs in hospitalized patients, the researchers combined the incidence of ADRs in the hospital and the incidence of ADRs causing admission to the hospital. The authors estimated that 2,216,000 hospital patients experienced a serious ADR and 106,000 deaths were caused by ADRs in the United States. continues above and to your right ...	This could account for 4.6 percent of all causes of recorded death in 1994, making these reactions between the fourth and sixth leading cause of death.   The World Health Organization defines ADRs as any noxious, unintended and undesired effect of a drug, which occurs at doses used in humans for prophylaxis [prevention], diagnosis or therapy. The authors define a serious ADR as one requiring hospitalization prolonging hospitalization, or one that is permanently disabling or results in death. (1)Source: Lazarou J; Pomeranz BH; Corey PN. Incidence of adverse drug reactions in hospitalized patients: a meta-analysis of prospective studies. JAMA, 1998 Apr 15, 279(15):1200?5.   DO YOU THINK CANADA IS REALLY ALL THAT MUCH DIFFERENT FROM OUR US COUSINS? Protect your rights to choose natural health products, find out how you can take action with all the details below ...
Many people are concerned about Bill C-51 Bill C-51 threatens choices in healthcare, say critics ... Bill C-51 threatens natural health products ... Demonstrators warn of Bill C-51 crackdown on natural health products and article feedback ... Will draconian Bill C-51 ban natural therapeutic products? It sounds almost like an innocuous housekeeping bill, until you start reading it ... Bill C-51 is pharmaceutical protectionism ... Canada’s Police State Bill C-51 Camouflaged as a Health Bill  ... Bill C51 protects profits, not the Canadian people ... Protest planned over herbal medicine amendment ...	Bill C-51 appears to be a sledge hammer used to squash a blade of grass. Google C-51 and educate yourself on the impacts this bill has on your rights and freedoms.

What is Bill C-51?

CURRENT NATURAL HEALTH PRODUCT DEFINATIONS: vitamins and minerals, herbal remedies, homeopathic medicines, traditional medicines such as Traditional Chinese Medicines, probiotics, and other products like amino acids and essential fatty acids.

Since 2004 when the Natural Health Product Regulations were introduced, natural health products have been increasingly threatened. The new Regulations were Health Canada’s response to consumer demands for the government to protect their access to natural health products. The Regulations have had the opposite effect.

To “legally” sell a health product the new Regulations impose a licensing requirement. The problem is that 60% of licence applications have failed. These have been the “easy” applications. Expectations are that 70-75% of applications will fail. For the NHP Community this means that 75% of NHPs we rely upon for our health will become illegal.

• Read the Draft Discussion Paper on Bill C-51 - Simplified description of Bill C-51 from NHPPA in MS Word format ...
• Read Bill C-51 draft legislation from the governments website ...

Bill C-51 reads like a Police State Manual

There has never been a death in Canada caused by a natural health product.

Considering that there are multiple deaths every year caused by common foods such as peanuts and shellfish, it is clear that natural health products are extremely safe. When you consider the health benefits of natural health products, including that many of us rely upon them for our very lives, it becomes clear that the real danger in regulating them is to “over-regulate” them off of the market.

Bill C-51 gives Health Canada unprecedented power to take natural health products away from us.

Traditionally in Canada we have had the rule of law.

• This meant that it was not okay for the State to take our property without a warrant and without Court supervision to prevent arbitrariness and abuse.
• Now to “protect” us the State under Bill C-51 can seize the property of persons in the natural health product industry, including natural health practitioners, makers of natural health products, and retailers. This would be problematic even if there had to be a realistic safety concern for the seizure, but there does not have to be a safety concern.
• Under the new law (Bill C-51) the State can seize without a reason, without a warrant, without limits to what can be seized, without a time limitation, and without reporting the seizure to a Court.

In some cases seized property can be forfeited to the State without Court approval. Owners will have to pay the costs of the seizure, transport and storage of seized things, even if it turns out that there was not a safety risk.

The State still needs to get a search warrant if they are going to search someone’s home, but if it is not a home they do not need a warrant and can trespass on private property without any liability.

Small family businesses are subject to the same maximum $5,000,000 fines as large corporations. Directors, officers and agents of a company can now be personally charged for the misdeeds of the company.

Even more troubling is that the State under Bill C-51 does not have to consider the health risk caused by their seizures.

Under Bill C-51, when the State seizes our natural health products, they are taking away our right to choose. That is, they are making our health decisions for us. We are then forced to use other treatments such as chemical pharmaceutical drugs which can be dangerous and ineffective.

For those of us who only get relief from natural health products, the State forces us to suffer and in extreme circumstances, to die. The seizure of Empowerplus is an example of where deaths resulted from the State seizing a natural health product that is now freely on the market.

• There is something wrong with “health” legislation which allows the State to seize health products without considering whether we need the products.  There willingness to do so has already be demonstrated.
• There is something wrong with the State making personal health decisions for us. Health decisions are fundamental to our personal autonomy.
• There is something wrong with the State being able to seize our property without prior Court approval, without clearly defined reasons for the seizure, without time limit, and without Court supervision.
• There is something wrong with the State being able to trespass on our property without any recourse.

It Appears The Canadian Government Plans To Make Your Health Safety Priority Last With C-51

Surely we can draft “health” protection legislation that does not read like a police state handbook.  More information (PDF) on C-51 and its impact on every Canadian on Health Canada's plans to make your health safety priority last...

Urgent Call to Action Against Bill C-51 - Time Is Of The Essence - Your Voice Counts

Bill C-51 was introduced into the House of Commons on April 8, 2008. The Bill is not yet law, but will become law unless Canadians act quickly. It is essential that you let key Members of Parliament know that:

• you are opposed to the police state powers in Bill C-51;
• you want them to vote against Bill C-51;
• you want your access to natural health products protected.

As a voting Canadian citizen, you have every right to object strongly to the fact that the Natural Health Product regulations are in numerous ways limiting your freedom of choice, and your ability to take care of your own body

Step 1: Members of Parliament pay attention to personal efforts by voters

You should send a hand written letter to:

• Your local Member of Parliament;
• Prime Minister Stephen Harper, and
• Tony Clement, the Minister of Health;

You can send your letters without postage to:

Name Stephen Harper, your MP and Tony Clement (send a separate letter to each one and please do it today)
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A6.

Here is a letter your can complete and/or modify and personalize with your information - you must include your name, address and telephone number with  your letter of protest to be considered valid.  Click here to download a word doc of the letter of protest ...

Step 2: Phone your local Member of Parliament and the Prime Minister’s Office to voice your concerns.

Here is a sample message you can deliver - in most cases you will reach an answering service or machine:

" Hello ____.  My name is ____, I live in the town/city of ____ and my phone # is: ____.   As a voting Canadian citizen and I want you to know that I object strongly to the fact that the Natural Health Product regulations under Bill C-51 are in numerous ways limiting my freedom of choice, and my ability to take care of your my own body.  

Bill C51 would make the large majority of NHP’s illegal, and simultaneously streamline the approval process for pharmaceutical drugs. I don’t want to use pharmaceutical drugs unless I have to, and to aid me in this I want more access to natural products...not less! I have sent you a detailed letter strongly stating my position and objection to Bill C-51.

If you support bill C51, one thing is certain: you will not be protecting anyone. With zero deaths in over 60 years, natural products are safe.

May this matter weigh heavily on your conscience. Thank you "

• Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s phone numbers are (613) 992-4211 and (403) 253-7990

• Health Minister Tony Clement’s phone numbers are (613) 944-7740 and (705) 746-9053 - Note: Laryssa Waler, Mr. Clement's press secretary has advised us that calling 613-957-0200 to be heard is recommended.

• Click here to find out your local MP’s number by your postal code ...

Step 3 - Email your protest to each - you can use the verbal example above, include name & tel.

Referenced Resources:

• Read the Bill C-51 draft legislation from the governments website ...
• Read the Draft Discussion Paper on Bill C-51 - Simplified description of Bill C-51 from NHPPA in Word format ...

Copyright © NHPPA. For more information on Bill C-51 or on threats to Natural Health Products, visit www.nhppa.org