Our advocacy: a future of equitable care
The ME|FM Society of BC is committed to championing issues impacting the lives of people with ME, Long COVID and FM through community partnerships and advocacy with local, provincial and federal stakeholders and decision-makers. Over the years we have collaborated with patient organizations across the country and internationally to advance the agenda for our community. We are extremely proud of the provincial-level work of the Society's Advocacy Committee and our wonderful MLA and ME Advocates.
Current advocacy
This June, our Society presented these three recommendations to the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services, representing the voices of our community. These recommendations form the foundation of our ongoing advocacy work as we continue to push for equitable healthcare access, and will be refined based on community feedback and evolving government priorities.
Recommendation 1
ME Pilot Integration into Community Health Centres
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"Designate ME as priority conditions in 2-3 pilot Community Health Centres to demonstrate how specialized chronic disease management can be effectively integrated into team-based primary care, following successful models like Ridge Meadows Family Health Team where similar collaborative care approaches have proven effective for complex chronic conditions."
Recommendation 2
Severe ME Care Gap
"Establish specialized care pathways for severe ME/CFS patients who are homebound or bedridden, including home-based medical services and telehealth supports, addressing the gap in services for the estimated 25% of ME/CFS patients who cannot access traditional healthcare settings."
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Recommendation 3
Workforce Development and Medical Education
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"Develop continuing medical education credits, modules and incentives for BC physicians, medical students, and other medical professionals to attend ME/CFS training, and establish clinical guidelines to improve supports and services for those diagnosed with myalgic encephalomyelitis."
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Provincial Advocacy
The Society’s My MLA and ME Advocacy Campaign volunteers have steadily built awareness and relationships with decision makers and government representatives. In addition, the Society led broader community participation in the public consultation process. These relationships, submissions and presentations to the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services have resulted in an ME-specific Budget recommendation for three consecutive years.
2024
Recommendation #80
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"Improve supports and services for those diagnosed with myalgic encephalomyelitis by establishing guidelines, developing specific billing codes, and training medical professionals to increase awareness."
Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services:
Report on the Budget 2024 Consultations; August 2023
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2023
Recommendation #118
“Prioritize and fund the development of myalgic encephalomyelitis-specific billing codes for BC clinicians and the development of continuing medical education credits, modules or incentives for BC physicians, medical students, and other medical professionals to attend training about myalgic encephalomyelitis.”
Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services:
Report on the Budget 2023 Consultations; August 2022
2022
Recommendation #72
“Prioritize and fund the development of myalgic encephalomyelitis-specific billing codes for BC clinicians and the development of continuing medical education credits, modules or incentives for BC physicians, medical students, and other medical professionals to attend training about myalgic encephalomyelitis.”
Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government Services:
Report on the Budget 2022 Consultations; Dec 2021
Federal Initiatives
ME Patients and Advocates Meet with Health Canada, 23 March
Our involvement in this campaign has continued since that date, and our main collaboration has been with Millions Missing Canada​ and independent patient advocates throughout the country.
July 2018
Members of our Board met with Dr. Khan, IMHA Scientific Director at the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) to continue discussions begun at the Montreal Conference, requesting much more money for ME research and to prioritize expansion of Canadian research capacity.
May 2019
Our Society partners with Millions Missing Canada and ME Victoria Association for the province's first live Millions Missing action!
