Hi everyone, Since August 22, 2017 when Sue Faber and I met with then Federal Health Minister Jane Philpott to deliver the Lyme Letters, a lot has happened. In the week following that meeting, an announcement was made that there was a federal cabinet shuffle triggered by an opening in another portfolio. Several Federal Cabinet Ministers were moved, including Minister Jane Philpott - who left the Health Portfolio right after we met with her and delivered the thousands of Lyme Letters and Petition comments! The existing department of Indigenous and Northern Affairs has been replaced by two new departments: former Indigenous Minister Carolyn Bennett became Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs, while Jane Philpott became the Minister of newly created Indigenous Services. The new Health Minister is Ginette Petitpas Taylor. Minister Petitpas Taylor is MP for the riding of Moncton-Riverview-Dieppe, New Brunswick. She has a background in social work and has been a passionate and strong advocate for many causes including pay equity for women, mental health and domestic violence. We encourage all of you to write Minister Petitpas Taylor to let her know you remain concerned about the lack of funding and attention to Lyme & other tick-borne disease in Canada. Those of you living in her riding can also request to meet with her personally in her constituent office to share your story and concerns personally. So what does this mean? We will be following up with Minister Philpott in her new role in Indigenous Services as there are many indigenous communities living in endemic areas for infected ticks. We will also be following up asking for a meeting with new Health Minister Petitpas Taylor and look forward to continuing the dialogue with her office, and also with Public Health Agency of Canada. On that note, last week, Public Health Agency of Canada hosted a round table with patient / advocate groups from all across Canada. LymeHope was very happy to have participated in this discussion and we have attached our video update with a detailed description of the half-day meeting. The purpose of the meeting was for Public Health to share the steps to implement the Framework Action plan, to provide an overview of how the $4 million in funding will be allocated (over the next 5 years) and to discuss ways to involve patients in this process. All the patient advocates (including LymeHope) were united in the strong message that we unanimously believe the priority must be patient-centred and provide solutions NOW to people already suffering, the newly infected and all Canadians who are at risk- i.e. better testing, more emphasis on diagnosis based on symptoms (clinical diagnosis) and more treatment options HERE so people don't have to leave Canada and pay out of pocket for urgent health care. However, Public Health Agency of Canada remains committed to the priorities outlined in the Framework of surveillance, education and prevention. So, within those parameters we will work with Public Health in a collaborative manner to try to begin the process of finding ways to start helping patients by beginning in those areas. There will be a multi-stakeholder (including patient groups), multi-year process as the details – the “Action Plan” – of the Framework are put into place. We are hopeful that this will be the beginning of a more integrated, inclusive functional working relationship with our federal public health partners, and we will provide updates as they happen. Please note, the Petition has been updated to reflect the change in the Health Minister, and also to reflect the fact that the draft Framework has now been finalized. Since none of the serious issues raised in this Petition have been properly addressed in the Final Framework, we continue to raise support for this Petition and continue to encourage you to sign, comment and share this Petition as much as possible all across Canada. We think EVERY Canadian needs to be aware of the growing risk of Tick-borne diseases in Canada and understand the desperate lack of (i) accurate diagnostic tests, (ii) experienced physicians educated in making a clinical diagnosis and all treatment options, and (iii) treatments in Canada for ALL forms of these diseases, especially the late stage, disseminated chronic forms. Thank you for your continued support and engagement! Jennifer Kravis & Sue Faber Co-Founders, LymeHope #LymeHope #LymeMoms #TickingLymeBomb