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Ticking Lym edisease m om s headtoParliam ent Hill by Tim Whitnell Metroland West Media 25 | Thursday, April 13, 2 0 1 7 | They call it a tick-ing Lyme bomb. Oakville' s Jennifer Kravis and Sue Faber of Burlington, are, quite literally tired of their suffering, and that of som e family mem bers, from the effects of Lyme disease -- and they're taking their concerns and frustrations to Ottawa. They will be joined on their journey by four other w om en -- two mothers, a friend w ho doesn't have Lyme, but is concerned, as well as a fourth w om an who wants to get help for Lyme-infected children. Kravis and Faber were expected to be in Ottawa on W ednesday April 12 and today (Thursday) to speak out against w hat they say is governm ent inaction on Lyme disease. They began a petition to convince the governm ent to repeal the draft framework that has com e out of Bill 4 4 2 , related to Lyme. The pair hoped to get an audience with federal Health Minister Jane Philpott while in Ottawa this week. Lyme disease is a bacterial infection caused by the bite of ticks, usually deer or black-legged ticks. The tick bites an animal infected with Lyme, often birds, m ice, deer or a small rodent, and then can pass the disease on to other animals or hum an hosts. O n its website, the Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation states that early treatm ent of Lyme is critical. It is treated with antibiotics for its control and possible cure, but it is a disease whose sym ptom s and severity vary from person to person; they can present themselves early on or not until weeks or m onths after infection. Undetected and untreated, those with Lyme can end up chronically ill, often exhausted, severely debilitated and unable to work. Kravis and Faber say they are prime examples of the devastation caused by Lyme having lived with it for m any years. That' s where their squabble with som e in the medical com m unity and the Canadian governm ent com es in, and part of the reason for their trek to the nation' s capital with a petition and personal letters in hand. ".... Canadian m en, w om en and children (are) literally pleading to be heard about their profound suffering and neglect as a result of the denial and lack of treatment for Lyme Jennifer Kravis disease in C a n a d a .," said Faber. Their petition asks for the federal governm ent to reject its current draft action plan regarding Lyme disease. Bill 4 4 2 , a Private M ember' s Bill forwarded by Green Party leader Elizabeth M ay was passed by the Canadian Senate in D ecember 201 4 . It required the minister of health to convene a conference with the provincial and territorial ministers responsible for health and with representatives of the medical com m unity and patients' groups for the purpose of developing a comprehensive federal framework to address the challenges of the recognition and timely diagnosis and treatm ent of Lyme disease. The draft framework was released Feb. 7, 2 0 1 7 , for public comm ent. This is where Kravis and Faber take issue. "This draft framework fails to take real action, has no funding and fails to protect Canadians from L y m e . . " states the Halton w om en' s petition. The petition, with a goal of 5 0 ,0 0 0 signatures, is intended to be delivered to Philpott with copies going to Prim e Minister Justin Trudeau and the Public Health Agency of Canada. It had nearly 3 9 ,0 0 0 supporters as of Tuesday, according to the petition' s website (http://bit.ly/2lfBuNL). "W e would love a meeting (this week) with Minister Philpott to present close to 1 0 ,0 0 0 com m ents from the petition as well as the over 2 ,3 0 0 Lyme l e t t e r s .. , " said Faber. She said they have meetings set up with eight "influential and concerned MPs representing all parties," with plans to share letters and the the petition' s comm ents. Kravis said she' s been told by the office of Oakville Liberal MP John Oliver he can't m eet with them while they are there. Faber said she reached out to Karina Gould' s office for a meeting, and expects to m eet with the Burlington Liberal MP today in Ottawa. The Oakville Beaver was unable to reach Gould' s office for comm ent. Faber stressed their endeavour is n ot a formal protest with placards. "This is a professional, calm and peaceful journey. W e will be handing out green ribbons and information sheets." However, the backdrop to the trip is that both Kravis and Faber have their own Lyme horror stories to tell. 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