Opinion: Civil servants get the Rolls Royce of pharmacare while party leaders can’t even muster a decent plan

National pharmacare is part of the election platforms of three federal political parties. The three plans differ but opinion polls show most Canadians do support a national insurance scheme for prescription drugs. Will election promises bring the benefits Canadians need?

Canada already has the basis of a national system for cancer drugs, which, when administered in hospital, are covered in all provinces with federal assistance under the Canada Health Act’s cost-sharing provisions. Although patients welcome the current trend towards taking cancer drugs taken at home, which reduces the time, cost and disruption of going to the hospital, take-home cancer drugs receive no federal cost-sharing. The four western provinces cover their cost but the other six do not.

Given the choice, what Canadian wouldn’t want the Rolls Royce drug plans available to federal politicians, civil servants and many of the academic advocates of pharmacare, who are covered through their private group insurance for all 13,000 drugs approved by Health Canada? If the Rolls weren’t available, however, would they be satisfied with a Buick drug plan that included coverage of specialized drugs not currently insured? Almost certainly.

Or could it be that the parties plan to force down drug prices to fit the inadequate pharmacare funds they intend to make available? The present federal government has recently moved in this direction for new drugs by changing the regulations governing the agency that sets ceiling prices for such drugs. But cheap will cost. Imposing huge price reductions will deter manufacturers from launching new innovative medicines here, which denies Canadians access to their benefits.

Thank You to unions for allowing workers to stand together and not get screwed by the owner class.

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