British Columbia is moving to slash the price of generic drugs, but in a way that avoids the nasty spat with big pharmacy witnessed in Ontario.
Under an agreement between the province, the B.C. pharmacy association and the Canadian Association of Chain Drug Stores, generic drug prices in B.C. will drop to 35% of the brand price, according to B.C. Health Minister Kevin Falcon.
The B.C. government will emulate Ontario’s effort to reduce professional allowances paid to pharmacies by manufacturers. However, unlike Ontario, British Columbia will not abolish the rebates altogether.
Also, the province’s drug stores will receive government funding for providing new pharmacy services, including medication therapy for customers.
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The agreement is expected to result in savings of up to $380 million a year.
Generic drug prices in B.C. currently average about 65% of brand-name costs.
The agreement was reached after several months of discussions between government and industry. Falcon had earlier insisted that a deal be reached by the end of June or the government would impose its own solution.
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