Growing drug plan costs are putting pressure on benefits plan sponsors to move to managed formularies—but industry stakeholders must first work together to change the…
Results from the 2012 Sanofi Canada Healthcare Survey suggest that opportunities exist for plan sponsors to better educate and engage plan members, according to a…
Express Scripts Canada has launched a mobile version of its Online Prescription Manager service, accessible at https://member.express-scripts.ca.
Mylan Pharmaceuticals has launced a new online resource, called ChoosingGenerics.ca, to help Canadians learn about generic drugs.
Just a year after the Ontario government gave the green light to remote dispensing machines, the fate of the controversial technology is up in the…
It was with disappointment that I read about the recent bankruptcy of PCAS Patient Care Automation Services Inc., and the related companies that were commonly…
The 7% provincial retail sales tax (RST) announced in the Manitoba government’s budget tabled in April 2012 will apply to group life insurance premiums, says…
It’s no secret that health and dental benefits represent a substantial cost for organizations. Yet most employers pay for these costs with little more than…
This month marks the fourth annual National Employee Wellness Month, an initiative that was created to build awareness around workplace wellness and help business leaders…
Eldercare and caregiving are increasingly important issues for employees and employers. According to the January 2009 study Balancing Paid Work and Caregiving Responsibilities: A Closer…
Brian Mulroney is wading into the high-stakes debate over patent protection in the free trade talks with Europe, and he's clearly taking sides.
Statistics show a rampant rise in obesity and health-related diseases in our culture, yet our largely inactive lifestyles seem to be proof that we’ve not…
Drug spending in Canada continues to increase and is closely watched by employers. However, a recent report from the Canadian Institute for Health Information’s (CIHI)…
The average employer pays between $3,000 and $6,000 per employee, per year, for a benefits program, depending on plan design and demographics. On that basis…
The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has changed its position on the tax implications of employee bonuses directed to healthcare spending accounts (HCSAs). Employers who have…
I recently had the opportunity to spend some time in Angola. It may be a stretch for many to translate this African experience into a…
Fundamentally, a group health and dental program is simply a “cost-plus” arrangement.
Drug spend in Canada may have remained flat in 2011, but private drug plans wasted approximately $5 billion last year, according to Express Scripts Canada’s…
The Empire Life Insurance Company has announced it will add a traditional healthcare spending account (HSA) to its group benefits products.
Workplace wellness may be a popular topic in the benefits space, but there is a lack of research clearly assessing the return on investment (ROI)…
The perfect storm in global economies over the past few years has dramatically transformed human capital and benefits markets, and an HR department must determine…
Back in the 1980s, when I worked in my father’s pharmacy, everything was fair game from a drug reimbursement standpoint. It’s incredible to think that,…
Rising drug plan costs, tighter restrictions on government-paid medical coverage, more employees working past age 65—all of these factors will play a role in driving…
It’s strange that, in all of this, there has been very little attention placed on the 70% to 75% of private plan spending that is…
It looks like the majority of Canadian employers recognize the importance of wellness in the workplace, and are implementing programs to improve the health and…