HEAL Committee News Release

For immediate release

Health Committee Members Gratified by the Reaction to their Report on
Organ and Tissue Donation and Transplantation in Canada

Ottawa, June 8, 1999 - The Chairman, Joseph Volpe, M.P. Eglinton-Lawrence, and members of the Standing Committee on Health are pleased that their report Organ and Tissue Donation and Transplantation: A Canadian Approach has received praise from individuals involved with organ and tissue donation and transplantation in Canada and internationally.

Here are some reactions to the report:

" The Canadian Association of Transplantation (CAT) would like to commend the House of Commons Standing Committee on Health for the report Organ and Tissue Donation and Transplantation: A Canadian Approach (April 1999). The report has encompassed the issues that CAT feels are crucial and need to be dealt with immediately."

"CAT supports the creation of a Canadian Transplant Network"

"The [Kidney] Foundation strongly supports the immediate establishment of a national coordinating and integrating body to provide oversight in organ and tissue donation and transplantation. This is an essential first step toward building an effective organ procurement system that is accountable and accessible to all Canadians."

"This is a comprehensive and complete report on organ donation and transplantation, one of the best, if not the best, I have ever read from an official body. Congratulations." Dr. Blanca Miranda, National Transplant Coordinator, Spain

The Government has 150 days from the date of tabling to respond to the report. For further information, please communicate with the Committee Clerk, Marie Danielle Vachon, at 613-947-6729 or consult the Parliamentary Web site at http://www.parl.gc.ca.