There were almost 4,000 opioid-related deaths in Canada in 2017, according to Health Canada statistics released in June. Meanwhile, in the United States, a new survey by the National Business Group on Health found 60 per cent of large employers had experienced at least one issue stemming from prescription opioid misuse or abuse in the workplace. Forty […]
While a national pharmacare program is likely to come with a tax hike, will that cost be balanced out by savings on prescription drugs and private drug spending? In a presentation to be delivered Friday to provincial and territorial premiers, former parliamentary budget officer Kevin Page is expected to be straightforward about the costs of a cross-country, publicly […]
Former federal budget watchdog Kevin Page will deliver a blunt message to premiers this week about the costs of a future national pharmacare program: if Canadians want one, taxes will have to go up. Page, who now heads a University of Ottawa think tank, will walk through the numbers Friday when he gives a presentation […]
Ontario’s new Conservative government has announced changes to the province’s youth pharmacare program to make it second payer for Ontarians under age 25 who have coverage through private benefits plans. “Today, our government is announcing our intent to fix the OHIP+ program by focusing benefits on those who do not have existing prescription drug benefits,” […]
When it instituted random drug testing last year, the Toronto Transit Commission was eager to ensure its employees knew what it expected of them. To get the message out, the transit authority mailed a handbook last year to the home of every employee and published it online so all workers would be fully aware of […]
A recent study examining the potential savings determined that, based on the uptake of available biosimilars in Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries, Canada could save between eight per cent and 43 per cent. Although Health Canada approved Inflectra, the first biosimilar for Remicade, in 2014 to treat a number of conditions, the drug […]
Orphan drugs represent a significant and growing share of new pharmaceutical entrants in Canada, according to a new report from the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board. At 54 per cent of new pharmaceuticals entering the market in 2015 and 42 per cent in 2016, orphan drugs have seen a significant rise from an average of 33 […]
With a national pharmacare program potentially on the horizon, many plan sponsors will be wondering about the impact on their benefits plans. At Benefits Canada‘s Calgary Benefits Summit on May 29, Joe Farago, executive director of health-care innovation at Innovative Medicines Canada, discussed some of the implications of national pharmacare. Farago began his session by […]
Canada could save an estimated $280 million a year in drug costs if biosimilar uptake here reached the levels seen in Norway, a speaker told attendees at a recent event in Calgary. “One problem with biosimilars is their uptake,” Andrea Staruch, a pharmacy services consultant at Green Shield Canada, said during a presentation at Benefits […]
The majority (85 per cent) of Canadian plan members used their drug plan at least once in the past year, according to the 2018 Sanofi Canada health-care survey. Among plan members who submitted drug claims, the average number per year was 9.4. That figure rose to 14.5 claims for both employees in poor health and those […]