tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4706374459042869519.post3217490898644200437..comments2023-10-06T09:08:06.583-06:00Comments on No Gluten, No Problem: How Do Other Countries Offset the Gluten-Free Premium?peterbronskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17048848527195520324noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4706374459042869519.post-68578885456086213282014-04-01T10:14:41.121-06:002014-04-01T10:14:41.121-06:00Honestly, although Italy is fantastically ahead, I...Honestly, although Italy is fantastically ahead, I think that an either or approach WOULD make sense. Either you can have a subsidy for the expense of gluten free convenience items or you can have time off work to make from scratch. Because honestly if you work 45+ hours a week (plus commute time, it's more like 50 for most), it is INCREDIBLY hard if not impossible to make most gluten free food from scratch (at least and still get a reasonable amount of sleep). If I wake at 6, leave for work at 7, work 8-5, get home by 6, make a gluten free "fast" dinner, prepare gluten free breakfast and lunch for the next day, eat, and do the dishes by 8, shower and do the essentials, I can be asleep by 10 for 8 hours (rarely is it that neat and forget it if there are evening events or overtime!). This definitely does not allow for homemade bread items! And this is with myself being fortunate enough to have time off on the weekends to do the grocery shopping and laundry. And that's with the American rush on everything listed; if a respectable meal was hours as is Italian tradition, it would require much more time.<br />-Amanda Y.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4706374459042869519.post-54948698106249334122013-07-01T14:10:41.133-06:002013-07-01T14:10:41.133-06:00In Canada, medical expenses must exceed 3% of net ...In Canada, medical expenses must exceed 3% of net income or approximately 2100 in order to generate a credit. Any medical expenses that are reimbursed by insurance (portions of prescriptions, dental, physiotherapy, counselling, etc.) are not included in the expense calculation although premiums paid for supplementary medical insurance are included.Sue Newellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08036061496174643030noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4706374459042869519.post-41834646780963815992013-02-08T08:43:58.755-07:002013-02-08T08:43:58.755-07:00Canada has a threshold for GF food deductions. It ...Canada has a threshold for GF food deductions. It is a part of your total medical expenses for the year. <br /><br />http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/ndvdls/tpcs/ncm-tx/rtrn/cmpltng/ddctns/lns300-350/331-eng.htmlAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4706374459042869519.post-50088327877513354152013-02-07T14:59:10.997-07:002013-02-07T14:59:10.997-07:00It's really astounding to see how different ce...It's really astounding to see how different celiac disease is treated in these countries in comparison to how it is treated in the United States. I do think the time off in Italy is unnecessary, but I do like that they do a stipend. That would certainly make things easier. <br /><br />However, time and again gluten free bloggers have proven that it is possible to eat gluten free and have the same budget as those who do not. Yet, that would mean giving up some things that we would like to have regularly, like breads and pastas that are ready made. I guess making them from scratch would be where the time issue would come into play.<br /><br /> I do think going to the pharmacy for my food would make me have a very strange relationship with it. I'd also feel like an outcast of society who couldn't just get her food at the regular grocery. Eating gluten free at all is enough to make someone feel abnormal, or like an outcast in society.<br /><br />Yet, if I lived in any one of these countries I think I'd be more likely to do a gluten challenge to get a proper diagnosis. It's just not worth it to me in the U.S.Amanda on Mauihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07025963903013322746noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4706374459042869519.post-30234600402443140532013-02-07T09:16:10.640-07:002013-02-07T09:16:10.640-07:00Wow, really great post, Pete! Thanks for sharing....Wow, really great post, Pete! Thanks for sharing. It's so interesting to see the different approaches to this in other countries. <br /><br />- Alicia, National Foundation for Celiac AwarenessAlicia_NFCAhttp://www.celiaccentral.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4706374459042869519.post-1381087501082275492013-02-07T09:08:47.445-07:002013-02-07T09:08:47.445-07:00Thank you for providing this! Good to see how oth...Thank you for providing this! Good to see how other countries are offering financial relief (both pros & cons). I was actually briefly researching this not too long ago, when contacted by a woman with celiac living in Serbia who is having a difficult time affording gluten-free foods, and she was interested in what the US was offering. I sent her links to the applicable pages of the countries you mentioned above), and the US Tax info. I was delighted though to discover your detailed article on this and just forwarded it to her! In my research, I also found subsidy info on New Zealand http://coeliacconz.joidesign.com/pharmac-part-subsidy and Israel: http://www.jpost.com/Health/Article.aspx?id=272686Paula @CeliacCornerhttp://www.celiaccorner.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4706374459042869519.post-82184069927094747302013-02-07T08:01:34.035-07:002013-02-07T08:01:34.035-07:00I think this is an interesting comparison - I am A...I think this is an interesting comparison - I am American by birth but live in the UK and my coeliac diagnosis came after I moved here. I spent a number of years on the prescription system which is good (and cheap) but inconvenient. Since my diagnosis five years ago, however, I have seen an enormous increase in the availability of gluten-free products in supermarkets and an increase in the quality of these products. In the past, foods on prescription generally tasted much better - now I am fully converted to the Sainsbury's supermarket brand pastas and baguettes. These are really the only gluten-free products I buy alongside Dove's Farm organic gluten-free flour blends (a popular well-respected artisan brand here for gluten-containing flours and biscuits as well) - I use tamari (but so do others!) and make the majority of my cakes myself. These days, I can successfully convert most standard cake recipes to gluten-free versions. I have found that the prescription is no longer necessary, and it is much more convenient to buy things at the supermarket rather than waiting for a prescription to be filled and then returning to the pharmacy to collect my mood. I will say that, like yourselves, I like fresh good quality food cooked from scratch, but I never felt that getting food on prescription de-valued that food in any way. In some ways I think it helps people to acknowledge that this is a medical condition to be taken seriously.Amelia Mansfieldhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07084737088806570587noreply@blogger.com