The health critic for the Green Party wants the province to investigate the high rate of neurodegenerative disease in younger New Brunswickers.

Memramcook-Tantramar MLA Megan Mitton urged the health minister to explore potential environmental causes.

“Environmental causes of the rapid onset of disabling neurological symptoms in relatively young New Brunswickers should be immediately investigated by public health,” said Mitton.

“Health Minister Bruce Fitch has a responsibility to determine if there is environmental basis for an increase in neurodegenerative syndromes in New Brunswick. The panel of neurologists appointed by the province to review the cases did not rule this out. The patients and their families deserve no less, and New Brunswickers deserve to know if these factors are involved or not.”

Provincial health officials identified a mystery brain disease in 48 patients in early 2021.

However, a committee composed of mostly neurologists found no evidence of a novel illness in 2022.

In a media statement, Mitton cited a recent report from an online news site and podcaster.

“In 2021, the Canadian Institute for Health Research was fast-tracking a funding proposal to carry out field research into possible environmental causes of this high incidence of neurological deterioration in New Brunswick,” noted Mitton.

“But in May of that year, the New Brunswick government asked for the funding application to be put on indefinite hold, according to documents obtained by Canadaland.com.”