The federal government’s callous treatment of Jeremy Meawasige, an Aboriginal teenager from the Pictou Landing reserve is nothing less than shameful. This youth is living with cerebral palsy, autism, spinal curvature, and a debilitating accumulation of spinal fluid in the brain. His mother, who is his primary caregiver, suffered a stroke in 2010 and requires further assistance to care for Jeremy. But rather than federal government fulfilling its obligation to provide Jeremy’s desperately needed care, the Conservative government has spent more than $200,000 dragging him and his family through the courts.

Because of Jeremy’s multiple conditions he can only speak a few words, cannot walk unassisted and needs extensive personal care including dressing, feeding and other day to day tasks most take for granted. The federal court has already told the government that they are obligated to pay for this support, but the Conservative government is appealing that decision. They have shockingly decided to continue spending money on lawyers, rather than the roughly $3,800 per month of additional support that is needed to manage Jeremy’s multiple conditions. In fact, the money they have spent dragging Jeremy and his family through courts would have funded over two and a half years of care for Jeremy.

In 2007 the House of Commons unanimously passed Jordon’s Principle. Jordan River Anderson was a five year old First Nations child from Manitoba who died in hospital while various levels of government spent two years fighting over who should pay for his home based care. The principle, named in his honour, states that the government jurisdiction or department first contacted about needed services for a First Nations child pays immediately, and then sorts out which government(s) is/are responsible later. Despite the fact the Conservatives voted in support of Jordan’s Principle, their government has completely failed to implement this principle.