Arthritis has devastating and debilitating effects on the lives of more than 120,000 Newfoundland & Labrador residents. Arthritis is the leading cause of disability and work disability in Newfoundland & Labrador where approximately 25% of the population with arthritis between 20 and 54 years of age are not in the labour force because of their arthritis. Within a generation, the number of Newfoundland & Labrador residents with the most disabling and life-threatening types of arthritis – osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis – is expected to significantly increase. To effectively treat and manage arthritis, the next elected Newfoundland and Labrador government must improve the level of arthritis prevention, treatment and care.
Voting safely during COVID-19
Find out how Elections Newfoundland & Labrador and the Office of the Chief Medical Health Officer are working together to ensure the Newfoundland & Labrador election is safe for voters, candidates and election workers: https://www.elections.gov.nl.ca/elections/voters/covid.html
ACE Election Survey
Considering the prevalence of the disease and its significant cost to individuals and society, Arthritis Consumer Experts sent an open letter and a survey to the political party leaders and candidates running in the Newfoundland & Labrador election, asking how their government would improve arthritis prevention, treatment and care.
Any responses from party leaders and candidates received by ACE will be archived and posted as they arrive.
ACE letter sent to each candidate included:
Email to candidates- ACE Survey: Share your plan for arthritis prevention, treatment and care in Newfoundland
Individual Candidate Responses
This section will be updated as we receive responses from individual candidates.
Questions from the public and people with arthritis
- Will you consider arthritis a health priority for Newfoundland & Labrador and implement high quality, standardized evidence-based models of arthritis care for all Newfoundland & Labrador residents?
- How do you plan to continue and improve virtual care?
- How are you going to increase the use of biosimilars and reinvest those savings to list new medicines and expand coverage for existing medicines?
- What will your government do to improve the healthcare and lives of Indigenous peoples living with arthritis in Newfoundland & Labrador?
- How will you improve reimbursement access for medicines approved for inflammatory arthritis?
- Will you take steps to increase the number of rheumatologists and trained arthritis professionals to ensure timely, specialized care for Newfoundland & Labrador patients with arthritis?
- Will you improve joint surgery wait times so that they are within medically recommended guidelines?
Helpful Resources
Arthritis Consumer Experts
ACE thanks Arthritis Research Canada (ARC) for its scientific review of ACE and JointHealth™ information and education programs.