To anyone who reads this from Ontario!

As you know, my mom has cancer; many have enquired how you can help. Up until now, we did not know how anyone could help. Now we do.

I am asking you to please choose to mail or e-mail a letter to your politician to get oral chemotherapy drugs the same coverage as intravenous chemotherapy drugs.

It turns out the first treatment for my mom's cancer is a pill, an oral chemotherapy drug. We were shocked to find out just two days ago that that the Ontario healthcare system does not cover many oral chemotherapy drugs, include the drug my mom needs. It is the only chemotherapy that will work for my mom's rare type of cancer. This drug costs $8000 per month (yes, eight thousand dollars), and requires the patient to take it for months or even years! My parents are fortunate that the drug will be mostly (not totally) covered by their drug plan. Her first month of drugs still cost $1600. After she goes over some a cap in a couple months, it should be fully covered, but we're waiting to get confirmation.

I wonder, though, how people of lesser means could afford such a costly drug?

Here is how you can help: please take the time to send a letter to the Premier of Ontario, your local Ontario MPP and/or the Ontario Minister of Health. Tell these elected politicians that you think Ontario citizens deserve to have oral chemotherapy drugs covered the same way intravenous chemotherapy drugs are covered.

Use this post as a template for the letter and email you're sending - feel free to use it verbatim or modify it how you like!

Thanks,
Krista

Here's a list of names and addresses to get you started:

Premier Dalton McGuinty
Legislative Building
Queen's Park
Toronto ON M7A 1A1
Or use this electronic form: https://www.premier.gov.on.ca/feedback/feedback.asp

The Minister of Health and Long-Term Care
The Honourable David Caplan
2062 Sheppard Ave. E.,
North York ON M2J 5B3
Or email: dcaplan.mpp.co@liberal.ola.org

MPP for Kingston and the Islands (where we live)
The Honourable John Gerretsen
Suite 2, The LaSalle Mews, 303 Bagot Street
Kingston, ON K7K 5W7
Or email: jgerretsen.mpp.co@liberal.ola.org

P.S. Whether you choose to support this cause or not, I thank you for reading this post, and for your thoughts and well wishes!

Update: also, feel free to join my new facebook group (yeah, slightly clichéd, I know, but hopefully effective): "Ontario Government: Cover Cancer Drugs".