“Forgotten” Victims Of Tainted Blood To Get Compensation
Posted July 25, 2006 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
And on Tuesday, the federal government finally freed them.
“They” are the so-called ‘forgotten’ victims of Canada’s tainted blood scandal, the patients who came down with Hepatitis C as a result of receiving contaminated transfusions.
They weren’t included in the original 1998 compensation package, because they fell outside the 1986-1990 timeline and the government claimed it couldn’t have known about the tainted blood before then.
But it was later shown those tests were available before and after those years, and now the Tories have agreed to provide $1 billion to those left out of the first compensation deal.
“It is the government’s sincere hope today’s announcement will provide a measure of closure to those who have suffered so much,” Prime Minister Stephen Harper reveals. “B ecause of the use of tainted blood products, these Canadians have been forced to endure a life of pain and suffering.”
It was a not so veiled reference to the Liberals, who arranged a compensation package that left out thousands of people.
And many didn’t survive to see their battle end. “E ach and every one of those deaths constitutes a Canadian tragedy,” Harper concedes. Those who didn’t live to receive their money will see it go to their families.
Still, the 5,500 who have already waited for so very long will have to wait a little longer for the money they’ve been seeking.
The P.M. notes there are a number of legal and administrative roadblocks that have to be cleared before the bucks flow.
“Nothing is quick,” he warns. “It will take a few months to complete the process…We anticipate and are hopeful that the cheques will actually start to arrive in the very early part of next year.”
The payouts could range from $1,000 to $300,000, but the criteria on who gets what may be open to controversy. They’ll be based on the severity of each victim’s illness and the financial hardships they’ve had to endure while fighting the disease.
And that may not always be quite so easy to determine.
But victims like Mike McCarthy are willing to embark on that journey. He received tainted blood from Arizona prison inmates. And he never thought he’d live to see this day.
“Victims felt like a political football, being punted around for many years and we weren’t worthy,” he laments.
Hepatitis C Primer
What is Hep C?
It’s a virus carried by your blood that can damage or even destroy your liver.
It can be transmitted by tainted blood transfusions or contact with unsterilized needles, like in a tattoo parlour, an unscrupulous acupuncturist or through drug use.
It can also be spread to an infant from his or her mother.
Some Canadians caught it during the infamous tainted blood scandal between 1986 and 1990 and many are fighting for compensation.
It’s not spread by mosquitoes, and you can’t catch it if someone sneezes or coughs on you or if you share their utensils or drinking glasses. There has to be infected blood contact.
But despite that, the reality is some may get it and never know the source.
Health Canada estimates there are 250,000 people who currently have the ailment – and many may be totally unaware of it.
While strains like Hepatitis A & B have long been known, the “C” version was only discovered in 1989.
What happens if you get it?
A lot – or almost nothing. The lucky ones have the virus in their bodies for a few months and seem to be able to get rid of it.
Some won’t get sick or if they do, it won’t last long.
The unfortunate ones have a much longer term internal battle going on, and the worst infected will develop cirrhosis of the liver.
That’s the seventh leading cause of death in Canada.
Symptoms
They vary and may not appear for a while after you’re infected. They can include:
- Fatigue,
- Jaundice (skin and eye turn yellow),
- Nausea or flu-like symptoms,
- Vomiting,
- Hair loss,
- Weight loss,
- Water retention,
- Trouble sleeping.
Treatments
There are no vaccines for Hep C, but there are treatments. Still, for some the cure is worse than the disease.
The current drugs used against Hepatitis C can cause a long list of equally unpleasant side effects.
It’s the illness that sidelined former Toronto Mayor Mel Lastman, who claims he’d rather die than take the medication again.
“I couldn’t walk 20 feet. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t move,” he remembers. “If I had to urinate, I had to sit down. You know, it was just horrible. I was always sick. If I drank water, I got sick. If I drank coffee, I got sick.
“If I had to do it again, I would never take that medicine. I think I would rather just pass on. It’s not a pleasant alternative.
“I like being alive and like being well and I’m glad I did it, but I’ll never do it again.”
Some information courtesy: Hepatitis C Society of Canada
For more information on Hep C, click here.
