Albina Guarnieri

Bill to End Volume Discounts
for Murder Reaches Parliament

In 1996, I first introduced a Private Members’ Bill to end volume discounts for multiple murderers. I had discovered to my dismay, that when a multiple murderer entered a courtroom, it was justice that was handcuffed. Incredibly, the second, third or eleventh victim of a multiple murderer could not count in the sentencing equation. Judges could not add a single day to the sentence of a convicted murderer for a second such crime.

The weight of injustices grew as I pursued this bill for the next four years. I found cases where witnesses were murdered because there was no risk and no penalty for the murderer. There was the murder of the Ottey sisters: Three and a half years in court, a conviction, and no change to the assailant’s existing sentence.

In 1999, my bill to impose consecutive terms of parole ineligibility finally passed the House of Commons. Regrettably, it was dragged through the Senate for 16 months and did not become law before the 2000 election would wipe the parliamentary slate clear.

I re-introduced my bill in subsequent parliaments and it was coming up for debate just last month. However, in mid-November, Justice Minister Rob Nicholson introduced a bill which also promises to end automatic concurrent sentencing for murder. I have withdrawn my bill and intend to support this bill and hope that the Government is serious about getting legislation through Parliament before another election. Victims groups are writing to the Government to prioritize this legislation and I have encouraged my own party and colleagues in other parties to support an end to a injustice that has haunted families of victims for too many decades.

Cost of Cancer Drugs Shows Need for Catastrophic Prescription Drug Coverage

A newly released report indicates that the average cost for a single course of cancer drug therapy runs beyond $65,000 for many Canadians.

One might think that these costs would be fully covered by our system of universal healthcare. Sadly, this is far from the case. The Canadian Cancer Society says that the average cost of drugs taken home for cancer care is over $20,000 annually. Cancer patients may have insufficient private drug coverage or none at all. Only three provinces fully cover treatment, leaving many Canadians with potentially ruinous treatment costs.One in twelve Canadians face catastrophic drug costs and I have been approached by several whose bills run into the thousands on a monthly basis. The result is that people already suffering with cancer face financial hardship as well.

Some were self-employed or between jobs when cancer struck and found their incomes vanish along with their savings.Canada must live up to its promise of universal health coverage by protecting people from prescription costs that exceed a small and manageable percentage of their income. In difficult economic times, more people are without company prescription drug benefits and the gaps in our healthcare system are more apparent than ever. Catastrophic drug coverage must be made an integral part of universal healthcare.