Mr. Speaker, today is Lou Gehrig day and June is ALS awareness month. Every year, more than 1,000 Canadians are diagnosed with ALS and 1,000 pass away from this terrible disease.
The life expectancy after diagnosis for a person with ALS is two to five years on average.
There are only two medications for ALS that have been approved in Canada.
It is important that all governments fund research to make ALS a treatable disease. There are currently 16 clinical trials in Canada. It is important all governments work together to reduce the time frame for drugs approval in Canada as patients do not have the luxury to wait.
I thank the Major League Baseball and Baseball Canada for raising ALS today through Lou Gehrig day. I encourage all Canadians to get involved in their local ALS walks and get their neighbours to donate.
Finally, I thank my colleagues from all parties who are part of the ALS caucus and are advancing issues on behalf of the ALS patient community.