Canadian thalidomide survivors say they expect offer this month

[polly7]

INGRID PERITZ
MONTREAL — The Globe and Mail
Published Monday, Jan. 05 2015, 3:00 AM EST
Last updated Monday, Jan. 05 2015, 4:45 AM EST

Talks are progressing between Ottawa and the Thalidomide Victims Association of Canada, which says it expects a multimillion-dollar settlement offer from the Conservative government by the end of the month.

The group wants Ottawa to make good on its promise to give 95 survivors “full support” by the time Parliament reconvenes Jan. 26. Talks are expected to resume this week after a series of “rigorous exchanges” in December aimed at creating the country’s first comprehensive aid package for Canadians hurt by the federally approved drug.

“Talks were positive,” Mercédes Benegbi, head of the Montreal-based association, said on Sunday. “We expect this deadline to be respected.”

The Conservative government supported a Commons motion Dec. 1 to support victims of thalidomide, a drug approved by health officials in 1961 and prescribed to pregnant women for nausea or insomnia. Far from benign, it caused severe birth defects such as shortened or non-existent limbs, and has spawned escalating health problems as victims reach their early 50s.

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http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/thalidomide-survivors-say-they-expect-offer-this-month/article22288083/