Media Release: LymeHope Moms Bring Voices to the Hill

OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - April 12, 2017) - Tens of thousands of Canadians, whose lives have been devastated by Lyme disease, are having their voices heard on Parliament Hill.

Two Canadian moms, Jennifer Kravis and Sue Faber, who have both been diagnosed with Lyme disease, are delivering more than 10,000 petition comments and personal letters written by men, women and children. These Canadians are literally pleading to be heard, as they endure profound suffering because of the lack of treatment for Lyme disease in Canada.

Kravis and Faber are two of the founders of LymeHope, an organization dedicated to giving a voice to those affected by Lyme disease in Canada.

"As mothers, we cannot turn our backs on a collective cry for help. There are no effective diagnostic and treatment options in Canada. People are left on their own, and this has to change," says Faber, a nurse from Burlington, Ont. who had to give up her career and continues to feel the effects of Lyme disease.

Jennifer Kravis is a lawyer and former bank executive from Toronto who also had her career cut short by Lyme.

"This disease takes a terrible toll on families and children. People are unable to work or go to school and they're often caught in a cycle of medical tests and false diagnoses. Some can scrape together the resources for treatment in the U.S. The rest just suffer."

Lyme disease is a tick-borne illness, which is becoming much more prevalent in Canada due to climate change. Just a decade ago, Lyme infected ticks were present only in few isolated pockets of the country.

Today, Lyme bacteria are found in virtually every province. It takes just one bite from one tick to transfer the infection to humans.

Canada's veterinary community is well aware of the increase of Lyme infected ticks and has developed a diagnosis and treatment protocol for pets and livestock.

The federal government passed Bill 442 requiring an action plan be created based on the best available information from medical and scientific experts and from patients themselves. LymeHope echoes the calls of the Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation, the Canadian Lyme Science Alliance and others at the forefront of research and treatment who have rejected the proposed Draft Federal Framework on Lyme Disease. LymeHope, the voice of thousands of Canadian patients, calls for a robust and properly funded plan to effectively treat those suffering from Lyme disease now, and those who might become infected in the future.

Kravis and Faber are in Ottawa on Wednesday April 12, and Thursday April 13, 2017. They will speak with MPs from all parties and are seeking a meeting with Health Minister Jane Philpott to ask whether the government will listen to the outcry of more than 38,000 Canadians who signed the Ticking Lyme Bomb petition.