CMA seeks amendments to federal drug bill

The CMA is continuing to pressure the government to amend Bill C-8, the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. In a brief presented to the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee Mar. 27, the CMA recommended that the federal government amend the legislation to strike an appropriate balance between illegal drug use and the legitimate medical use of drugs. An amendment introduced to the bill's predecessor, Bill C-7, would have restricted the government's regulatory power, but the legislation died on the order paper.

The CMA acknowledged that significant amendments have already been made in response to physicians' concerns. For instance, as a result of CMA lobbying, the act of writing a prescription for a controlled drug will not be considered trafficking under the legislation. As well, the status of the double-doctoring offence has been restored, the definition of drugs controlled under the legislation has been restricted, physicians will not be subject to a double penalty when convicted of a drug-related offence and patient records will not be subject to administrative scrutiny. However, the CMA believes that failure to amend the bill will encourage Ottawa to take an intrusive approach to medical practice by regulating the medical use of drugs.

| CMAJ May 15, 1996 (vol 154, no 10) |