Pandemic Support

Global News: BC COVID vaccine victim still waiting for compensation

An East Vancouver man who is one of the rare people to suffer from severe adverse effects from the COVID vaccine continues to fight a bureaucratic nightmare to collect the compensation he qualifies for.

While his medical and support costs were officially approved back in February, federal delays left him waiting for months without reimbursement—facing financial distress, lack of home care, and the threat of eviction. 

I raised his case directly in Parliament to hold the government accountable and demand immediate action for urgent Vaccine Injury Support Program (VISP) cases. 

Following our advocacy, he has finally received his payment. However, individuals in our community facing rare, life-altering medical reactions should never have to fight through months of red tape just to receive the support promised to them. I will continue advocating for a system that acts with urgency, fairness, and compassion.

*Click image or link to watch the news story - https://globalnews.ca/video/11988722/bc-covid-vaccine-victim-still-waiting-for-compensation/

 

HANSARD: Demands immediate federal action for a disabled constituent due to stalled bureaucratic delays

CTV NEWS: A B.C. man owes $27,000 in COVID benefit repayments. He's fighting back and is not the only one

The Member of Parliament for his riding of Vancouver East, Jenny Kwan, penned a letter to the CRA advocating for Masse in November 2022.

"We actually have a contract that he has with AIDS Vancouver and there are invoices that he has issued that's related to the work that he's done," said Kwan over a ZOOM interview on Sunday.

"This has happened, by the way, to other constituents of mine whose income is less regular if you will, on a contract basis," added Kwan.

She said the CRA told her that they need verification to show that a person's money has gone into their bank account, but Kwan says that's not always the process for low-income earners.

"People who are on a tight income, whose income finances are coming and going very rapidly, a lot of people don't deposit that money into their account, they literally cash the cheque," said Kwan.

TYEE: A Two-Year Strike Tests Hotel Workers’ Wills

Since then, Richmond city council has voted to effectively boycott use of the hotel. So has the BC Federation of Labour, whose secretary-treasurer Hermender Singh Kailley appeared on the picket line to mark the two-year anniversary of the strike.

So did NDP MP Jenny Kwan, who criticized the hotel’s owners for their position, noting they had received substantial federal funding during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Starting in 2020, the federal government contracted 38 locations across Canada to be used as designated quarantine facilities for international travellers, including the hotel.

Open Letter to Government: Extend CEBA Loan Repayment Deadlines

Small businesses in my Vancouver East riding are calling on your government to extend the Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) loan repayment deadline, a measure which my New Democrat colleagues and I absolutely agree is a necessary measure.

The evidence is clear: according to your own government’s numbers, as of February 2023, fewer than 15% of all businesses who sought relief from CEBA loans had repaid the loan in full. The repayment date must be extended to ensure that small business owners have a fair chance to receive the benefits of the loan forgiveness and interest relief provisions of the loan.

Here in Vancouver East, and indeed across British Columbia, the health of small businesses is a primary determining factor in the health of our economy. 98% of all enterprises in BC are self-employed or small- to-medium businesses with fewer than fifty employees. One in ten people in our province are entrepreneurs. Small business is what business looks like in BC.

Open Letter to Government: Extend CEBA Loan Repayment Deadlines

Small businesses in my Vancouver East riding are calling on your government to extend the Canada Emergency Business Account (CEBA) loan repayment deadline, a measure which my New Democrat colleagues and I absolutely agree is a necessary measure.

The evidence is clear: according to your own government’s numbers, as of February 2023, fewer than 15% of all businesses who sought relief from CEBA loans had repaid the loan in full. The repayment date must be extended to ensure that small business owners have a fair chance to receive the benefits of the loan forgiveness and interest relief provisions of the loan.

Here in Vancouver East, and indeed across British Columbia, the health of small businesses is a primary determining factor in the health of our economy. 98% of all enterprises in BC are self-employed or small- to-medium businesses with fewer than fifty employees. One in ten people in our province are entrepreneurs. Small business is what business looks like in BC.

OPEN LETTER to BC Minister of Health and Vancouver Coastal Health Chair

It is wonderful that some of the seniors may be able to book an appointment with the help of family, friends, or support workers; sadly, there are those who unfortunately do not have access to such a support network I have heard from some of the elderly seniors in Vancouver East who are concerned that they will have difficulty in registering for the vaccine due to language barriers.
To help facilitate access to this potentially life-saving immunization for vulnerable people, especially for the elderly where language and mobility is an issue, I would like to offer two suggestions for your consideration.

Faces of Advocacy Interview: Faces of Advocacy: Champion Interviews: MP Jenny Kwan of Vancouver-Mount Pleasant

This video features an interview hosted by Dr. David Edward-Uipoon, founder of Faces of Advocacy, with Jenny Kwan, the NDP Critic for Immigration and Member of Parliament for Vancouver East. Published on November 7, 2020, the conversation focuses on the challenges facing Canadian family reunification during the COVID-19 pandemic and systemic issues within Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).

*Click image or link to watch the video interview - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnU9EX3OHds

OPEN LETTER to Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion

I am writing you today to request that your office undertake to address the delays and technical errors that my constituents are experiencing with the Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB), and the new temporary changes to Employment Insurance (EI).
I have heard from two different constituents who received the same error message, COV-26, while attempting to apply for the CRB. The error apparently appears because CRA deems that the applicants have an active EI claim within the last 52 weeks which prevents them from accessing the CRB. However, both my constituents have not received any EI benefits in the last 52 weeks. They applied for EI when the pandemic first started and were transitioned to CERB as that was the policy in place.

JOINT OPEN LETTER - MP Kwan, MLA Mark and Mayor Kennedy joint letter to the federal housing minister addressing Vancuver homelessness crisis

We have been facing a homelessness crisis in Vancouver for many years. The number of people experiencing homelessness in Vancouver more than tripled from 2002 to 2017. Since then, substantial investments in housing from the Province and the City have managed to stop those runaway increases, but the situation remains a crisis, especially with the added pressures of COVID-19. According to the preliminary data report from the 2020 homeless count in Metro Vancouver, 2,095 individuals were identified as homeless in the City of Vancouver, with 547 individuals completely unsheltered, and 105 people residing in emergency response shelters who would otherwise be unsheltered.
As your government has recognized in your Reaching Home strategy, homelessness has devastating impacts on the individuals experiencing homelessness, as well as the economic and social well-being of communities. And, like your government, we are committed to helping those who are homeless and share your belief that one homeless Canadian is one too many. However, it must be recognized the existing timeline and resources under the National Housing Strategy are deficient in meeting the urgent housing and homelessness crisis in our community.
Furthermore, in the midst of a global pandemic, the first public health directive issued by all levels of governments – and by governments worldwide – was for people to stay home, stay distanced, and practice aggressive hygiene measures. This is impossible for people who are homeless.