I'll continue on that same line. Obviously, the challenge here is that the numbers are difficult. We all understand that, in many cases, people end up being able to qualify for a sick benefit or, if you were able to qualify, there's still maternity leave that's accessible for some people.
There are people who fall through the cracks of those things and we're trying to make sure that everybody has that access, but the numbers aren't as big as they might sound because there are people who are able to qualify for other benefits.
The problem—and we're hearing it from you today and we've heard it from others—is that you have to go and fight with the bureaucracy and fight with the government to get it. It's not that anyone is trying to deny it, it's just that nobody understands how to deal with it. I'd like all of you to speak to that part of it because that's the thing I'm hearing quite frequently from people. It's this thinking that if it could just be automatic, then people wouldn't have to struggle and have this battle to try and make this work, to try and fit this square peg into a round hole. That seems to be the biggest challenge. If any of you would like to speak to that specifically, like the idea of something that is actually specific to your circumstance of bereavement—and it also would be automatic so that....
I've heard stories from people. I think there was one family from the Ottawa area here who told their story 17 different times to government agents in order to get their benefits. They were able to get them, but they told their story 17 times. I would think that if we could eliminate that, it would make a big difference. Also, there needs to be recognition that this is something that is significant and that we need to address, rather than trying to find ways to fit it into some other category.
I don't know that we would end up finding that there would be a significant number of new benefits paid out, but I think people would feel recognized. I think we would lessen the burden on people to try and deal with the bureaucracy.
I wanted to hear some comments on that, if any of you have them. Is there anyone who wants to jump in?
Cheryl.