Madam Speaker, I want to pay tribute to my sister Nancy, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in November 2019.
She received the diagnosis after having a mammogram and a biopsy. She was devastated. She was starting a new life with her spouse, she had a good job and everything was turned upside down. She had six months of chemotherapy and then, in May 2020, she had a partial mastectomy and 23 radiation treatments. Nancy had to stop working to take care of her health.
The 15 weeks of EI benefits she is entitled to are absurdly insufficient to help women who, like her, face the greatest challenge of their lives, beating cancer. The 50 weeks of EI sickness benefits we are asking for would really help these women and spare them unnecessary stress. They currently have to focus on fighting their illness and trying to survive, without having the peace of mind they deserve.
I am proud of my sister for her courage and strength. With all my love, I wish her good health.