Evidence of meeting #15 for Health in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was funding.
A recording is available from Parliament.
5 p.m.
Liberal
Doug Eyolfson Liberal Charleswood—St. James—Assiniboia—Headingley, MB
Thank you very much.
Thank you, everyone, for these great presentations.
Dr. Beaudet, you said a couple of things about antibiotic use and resistance. I practised emergency medicine for 20 years, and it's a topic that's near and dear to my heart. I agree with what you were talking about with Mr. Oliver, regarding the part of it that is incomplete treatment. We know that a lot of the problems with drug resistance in tuberculosis in the U.S. was because of an incomplete eradication program. It was good to see that brought up and its importance.
An issue that I've started to do some research into, and I will probably be talking to you privately about at some time in the future, is antimicrobial resistance and the use in agriculture. I know it's a very controversial issue. I was concerned about it before. I'm reading this now, and I'm terrified, quite frankly. I knew we were heading to a bad place, the way this was going.
Where are we in the research on this? Do we have any ideas or answers on where we should be going with regulations on this from the research so far?
5 p.m.
President, Canadian Institutes of Health Research
From a research perspective, first of all, as you know, there are still a lot of questions regarding the passage of resistant genes from bacteria that infect animals and the bacteria that infect man, the relationship between the agricultural use and the medical use of antibiotics. More and more evidence, as you know, is pointing to the fact that there is a connection, and that there's clearly a role for the use of antibiotics, not only in humans but also in agriculture. That's the first thing.
One of the major problems, as you know, is that the business model for antibiotics is very different than the business model for other drugs. Antibiotics are not expensive and they are not given for a long time, even though patients often don't take them for the full 10 days, unfortunately. The treatment by and large is not very expensive. From a manufacturing standpoint, the usual business model of making antibiotics is not working as it does for other drugs, because they're cheap, people don't take them for a long time, and they are cured.
We're facing a real problem here. Do you know how many antibiotics there are in the world's pipeline right now for all the pharmas that are being trialled? It's nine new antibiotics. You can imagine that the incentive for pharmas to develop antibiotics is not there, because if you develop one, it means essentially that you have to develop one that won't be used, that we will keep in reserve in case we have a bug that's really resistant to absolutely everything else.
From a sales perspective, it's not great. We really have to do research on changing the model system and looking at new ways of developing drugs, ways that are very different. That's another area of research that will have a very profound influence on the way we treat both animals and humans.
5 p.m.
Liberal
Doug Eyolfson Liberal Charleswood—St. James—Assiniboia—Headingley, MB
I've been talking to some representatives of the livestock industry, and I know there are different ways antibiotics are used. Sometimes they're used to treat infections. From what I understand, there are some who use them because they're using them prophylactically, or they tend to grow better. One of the claims I've heard from representatives of the livestock industry is that these are something called “ionophores”, which as a physician I've never heard of, but these are apparently some sort of antibiotic that is not related at all to the antibiotics that are for use in humans. That sounded suspicious to me. I'm glad to see you're nodding. This is not the case, from what you're saying.
5:05 p.m.
President, Canadian Institutes of Health Research
If it's an antibiotic, it's acting against the proliferation of bacteria. You have various mechanisms that are used to kill bacteria. If it affects bacteria in the livestock, it will affect other bacteria as well.
5:05 p.m.
Liberal
Doug Eyolfson Liberal Charleswood—St. James—Assiniboia—Headingley, MB
Okay, thank you. You would agree that any use like this has an implication for human health.
5:05 p.m.
Liberal
Doug Eyolfson Liberal Charleswood—St. James—Assiniboia—Headingley, MB
Yes, I have no more questions at this point. Thank you.
June 8th, 2016 / 5:05 p.m.
NDP
Don Davies NDP Vancouver Kingsway, BC
What will I do with it?
I want to return to the question about the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. I know the agency inspects meat. I think in my first briefing I was told that its jurisdiction extends even to go into restaurants to check the menus and to make sure they are conforming. Leaving aside our position on the merits, I'm quite shocked that the Food Inspection Agency is not inspecting facilities that are selling edibles with a psychotropic drug in it, marijuana.
My first question is this. Did the previous Conservative government instruct the CFIA to inspect those food selling establishments?
5:05 p.m.
Vice President, Policy and Programs Branch, Canadian Food Inspection Agency
Our colleagues from Health Canada may wish to comment.
5:05 p.m.
Vice President, Policy and Programs Branch, Canadian Food Inspection Agency
The presentation of a product with a claim, with respect to any drug or drug related, is covered by Health Canada and not by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. Our mandate extends to foods. It is true that a product can be both a food and a drug, but when that is the case, Health Canada manages it as a drug.
5:05 p.m.
NDP
Don Davies NDP Vancouver Kingsway, BC
Okay, so with whoever would be inspecting things as a drug, if someone is selling an edible to the public that contains a psychotropic drug, is there any inspection to make sure the public know what they're eating?
5:05 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister and Chief Financial Officer, Chief Financial Officer Branch, Department of Health
Inspection of these dispensaries, and the brownies, or whatever, that are in them—
5:05 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister and Chief Financial Officer, Chief Financial Officer Branch, Department of Health
No.
5:05 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister and Chief Financial Officer, Chief Financial Officer Branch, Department of Health
Not that I'm.... Unless there's something happening at the municipal level, it's not been....
5:05 p.m.
NDP
Don Davies NDP Vancouver Kingsway, BC
We're inspecting a meat facility to make sure we don't get sick from meat, but we're not inspecting a facility that's selling an edible with a drug in it to make sure someone doesn't get sick from that.
5:05 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister and Chief Financial Officer, Chief Financial Officer Branch, Department of Health
That's correct.
5:05 p.m.
NDP
Don Davies NDP Vancouver Kingsway, BC
Okay.
I didn't get an answer to my question. Were you ever instructed by the Conservative government to go into any of these facilities to do any inspections, whether from a health or from a food inspection agency perspective?
5:05 p.m.
Assistant Deputy Minister and Chief Financial Officer, Chief Financial Officer Branch, Department of Health
No, because they're not legitimate. We were not instructed to not inspect, or to inspect illegitimate—
