Allergy safety debate coming to city council

Councillor Ritesh Narayan submitted a notice of motion to bring forward a proposal to the next council that the city make it mandatory that all Chestermere eateries and public facilities have epinephrine auto-injectors on site.
“My goal is to create public awareness and increase discussion about food allergies that could be fatal,” said Narayan.
According to Narayan, food allergies have increased by more than 350 per cent in the last 20 years and anaphylactic reactions to food allergies can prove fatal with access to epinephrine.
“Knowing what to do when someone is experiencing an allergic reaction and having epinephrine at your disposal can possibly save lives,” he said.
When the motion is brought to council, if it is passed as a municipal bylaw, Chestermere would be the first community in Canada to make the placement of epinephrine auto-injectors mandatory.
“In May 2013, the House of Commons unanimously passed Motion 230 to raise awareness of anaphylaxis and directed different levels of government to take action,” said Narayan.
However, Narayan said that no government has yet taken any action on this to raise awareness.
If passed by council the placement of epinephrine auto-injectors would be similar to the voluntary placement of defibrillators in public spaces.
“I think defibrillators is to recreational arenas as EpiPens are to eateries,” said Narayan.