New Commentary: Time to Improve Transparency at Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency
by
Marc-André Gagnon and Marie-Hélène Bacon
Members of our research team have published a new commentary piece in CMAJ (the Canadian Medical Association Journal), a peer-reviewed general medical journal that publishes original research, commentaries, analyses and reviews, clinical practice updates and thought-provoking editorials.
Key Points:
-
In the last year, Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency has been criticized for not releasing information about the safety of pesticides because data are considered confidential business information.
-
This level of secrecy contrasts with Health Canada’s efforts to improve transparency related to therapeutic products.
-
Vanessa’s Law gives the federal Minister of Health discretionary powers to share confidential business information on therapeutic products when it perceives there is a serious risk to human health or the environment.
-
The Minister of Health should be granted similar discretionary powers to make safety data for pesticides publicly available.