The Prentice healthcare levy is not a cure for the Alberta health system
By Herb Emery Alberta, Alberta healthcare, Canada’s healthcare system, Canadian healthcare system, cost of drugs, drug cost, Drug coverage, health care spending, Healthcare spending, Pharmaceutical, provincial drug plan
The Prentice government announced that it will restore the use of healthcare taxes so that Albertans can directly contribute to the healthcare system. On the surface, levying up to $1000 per person earning over $50,000 per year to contribute approximately $0.5 billion over two years towards an $18 billion medical treatment system sounds reasonable.
Pharmacare is good for business
By Steve Morgan and Danielle Martin Canada’s healthcare system, Canadian healthcare system, Canadian medicare, cost of drugs, drug cost, Drug coverage, employee benefits, health care spending, national drug plan, Pharmaceutical
Repeatedly over the past 50 years, national commissions and inquiries have recommended that Canadian medicare include universal, public coverage of prescription drugs. So far, no government has acted on this, creating profound inequities and inefficiencies in our health care system. But more than that: the lack of universal pharmacare is bad for Canadian businesses, large and small.
Is it finally time for a national drug plan?
By Livio Di Matteo Canada’s healthcare system, Canadian healthcare system, Canadian medicare, cost of drugs, drug cost, Drug coverage, health care spending, health service funding, national drug plan, Pharmaceutical, positive innovation
A new study in the Canadian Medical Association Journal with health economist Steve Morgan as lead author argues a national universal care drug program would not result in substantial tax increases. Indeed, such a plan reduces public and private spending on prescription drugs by $7.3 billion annually – or by 32 percent.
By Steve Morgan aging population, British-Colombia, drug cost, drug plan, ontario, Pharmaceutical policy, prescription drug, prescription drugs, seniors, subsidy, tax, universal pharmacare
Ontario spends $11-billion per year on prescription drugs. Nearly half of this is spent on medicines used by senior citizens, a group that receives public subsidies for nearly all of their prescription drug costs in Ontario.