On June 2-4, 2003 CAW retirees from Windsor, London, St. Thomas, Toronto, Ajax and Oshawa traveled to Ottawa to attend the Parliamentary Standing Committee Hearings to review the Drug patent laws in Canada.
Retired Workers Advisory Executive Chairperson Len Harrison, who helped organize the lobby along with the Canadian Health Coalition, The Generic Drug Manufacturers Association and Green Shield Canada, said the Notice of Compliance regulation is a loophole in the Patent Act which allows the Major Brand name Drug Companies to extent patents beyond the current 20 year protection. This practice called "evergreening" is a way of blocking the generic companies from producing drugs at a lower cost.
The Retired Workers attended the hearings and met with members of the Standing Committee to express the concerns of the CAW on this issue.
On Wednesday afternoon Windsor NDP MP Brian Masse, who is a member of the standing committee, Windsor NDP MP Joe Comartin, and NDP Health Critic Svend Robinson, organized a special meeting to give the retirees an update on the patent laws and other important health care issues. The Retirees appreciated the opportunity for this question and answer session and found it very informative.
Brian Masse thanked the CAW Retirees for making the trip to Ottawa and said "that their attendance at the three days of hearings brought a real dynamic to the proceedings".
