Thank you for joining us this morning. You have made a number of fairly specific recommendations.
I would like to talk about Gardasil. A number of people who took this drug in Europe and in the United States, but not here in Canada, later died. Here in Canada, a major campaign is underway to have young girls between the ages of 15 and 25 vaccinated. Of course, it is difficult to establish a link between the deaths and the use of this drug. I understand that a company is currently conducting an investigation in Germany and in Switzerland. For now, no one is able to establish a cause-effect relationship. Eight young girls have died in the United States.
I contacted officials at Health Canada because they are the ones who initially approve a drug for use and grant a patent. They told me that vaccinations were the responsibility of the Public Health Agency. It was the agency that had opted to go ahead with the vaccination program. In your opinion, is there not a breakdown of some sort in the chain between the moment a patent is issued and a drug is administered to patients? The chain is rather hard to follow.
Young girls continue to receive the vaccination despite the known risks involved. In light of the situation, I'm wondering if perhaps a moratorium could be imposed for a few months, depending on the type of investigation that we may wish to conduct. Were you aware that Gardisil could have serious side effects? How can patients be made aware of these possible side effects? Perhaps in the case of a young girl of 15, the parents should be notified as well. So then, I ask you, how could we be more vigilant under the circumstances? We feel completely powerless.