scholarly journals Catastrophic Drug Coverage in Canada

2013 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Karlo Franko Azores
Keyword(s):  
Prescription Drugs ◽  
Drug Coverage ◽  
Hospital Outpatient ◽  
Outpatient Prescription ◽  
Coverage Policy ◽  
Point Of Reference

There is currently no nationwide catastrophic drug coverage in Canada, and this creates many inequities with regards to the costs and accessibility of out-of-hospital (outpatient) prescription drugs. This paper examines why catastrophic drug coverage needs to be addressed as well as implemented in order to improve the inequities in provincial drug plans and the continued non-coverage of outpatient prescription drugs. This paper used the recommendation of the 2002 Romanow Commission as a point of reference for the need to implement catastrophic drug coverage in Canada. Moreover, the 2003 First Ministers’ Accord and 2004 First Ministers’ Meeting are used to reveal the government’s initiative to develop a Canadian catastrophic drug coverage policy that remains unaddressed and unimplemented to this day.

Fade to Black: Importation and Counterfeit Drugs

2006 ◽  
Vol 32 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 279-323 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bryan A. Liang
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Prescription Drugs ◽  
Prescription Medications ◽  
Health Statistics ◽  
Counterfeit Drugs ◽  
Hospital Outpatient ◽  
The Us ◽  
Outpatient Departments ◽  
Outpatient Settings

Americans rely extensively upon prescription medications to maintain health and quality of life. According to the National Center for Health Statistics, in 2002, at least 1.5 billion drugs were prescribed to patients in physician offices, 196 million in US emergency departments, and 140 million in outpatient settings. Almost two-thirds of visits to physician offices and hospital outpatient departments had at least one drug associated with the visit, and 7% of visits had five or more drugs. In 2004, US pharmacies dispensed over 3.5 billion prescriptions to patients. Estimates indicate that annual expenditures for prescription drugs in the US top $230 billion dollars each year—and there is every indication that these numbers will only increase.

Adverse Selection in Retiree Prescription Drug Plans

2006 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Dana P Goldman ◽  
Geoffrey Joyce ◽  
Pinar Karaca-Mandic ◽  
Neeraj Sood
Keyword(s):  
Adverse Selection ◽  
Prescription Drugs ◽  
Claims Data ◽  
Drug Coverage ◽  
Switching Behavior ◽  
Part D ◽  
Drug Benefits ◽  
Prescription Drug Plans ◽  
Plan Selection ◽  
Independent Effects

We used claims data from a large U.S. employer that introduced changes in its medical and drug coverage offerings in 2002 for non-Medicare eligible retirees. In addition to the existing plans, the employer introduced two new plans in 2002 that were less generous both in terms of medical and drug coverage. Further, one of the new plans had an annual benefit limit of $2,500 on prescription drugs, similar to the “doughnut hole” in the standard Medicare Part D benefit. We examined beneficiaries switching behavior in response to the new choice set and estimated the independent effects of medical and drug benefits on plan selection. We found that beneficiaries in better health were more likely to switch to the new, less generous plans. While the generosity of the medical benefit played a more important role in choosing a plan, choices did not vary significantly by health status. In contrast, sicker individuals were more likely to enroll in plans with generous drug benefits. This suggests that drug coverage may be more susceptible to adverse selection than medical insurance.

scholarly journals Understanding the Battle for Universal Pharmacare in Canada Comment on "Universal Pharmacare in Canada"

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marc-André Gagnon
Keyword(s):  
Prescription Drugs ◽  
Access To Medicines ◽  
Academic Community ◽  
Drug Coverage ◽  
Value For Money ◽  
Drug Access ◽  
Canadian Population ◽  
Overwhelming Evidence ◽  
Appropriate Prescribing ◽  
Catastrophic Coverage

Drug coverage in Canada is a patchwork; an inequitable inefficient and unsustainable patchwork with no coherence or purpose. Some people think that we can solve the problem by adding more patches, but the core of the problem is that it is a patchwork. For the working population, access to medicines is still organized as privileges offered by employers to their employees. Universal pharmacare would not only provide better access to needed prescription drugs, but also eliminate waste, ensure value-for-money and help improve drug safety and appropriate prescribing. Opponents fear that a universal pharmacare plan would ration drugs, and impede drug access for some patients. However, these claims misunderstand the reality of drug coverage, pricing and access. Opponents propose, instead, to "fill the gap" of current drug coverage by implementing catastrophic coverage, which would serve commercial interests without maximizing health outcomes for the Canadian population. In spite of overwhelming evidence and consensus in the academic community in favour of universal pharmacare, the battle is far from over.

Exploring Prescription Drug Coverage and Drug Use for Older Americans

2002 ◽  
Vol 36 (11) ◽  
pp. 1704-1711 ◽  
Author(s):  
David A Mott ◽  
Jon C Schommer
Keyword(s):  
Drug Use ◽  
Prescription Drug ◽  
Prescription Drugs ◽  
Older Persons ◽  
Insurance Coverage ◽  
Drug Coverage ◽  
Prescription Drug Coverage ◽  
Older Americans ◽  
Drug Insurance ◽  
Prescription Drug Insurance

OBJECTIVE: To describe existing prescription drug insurance coverage for older Americans, to describe out-of-pocket payment levels per prescription associated with service benefit prescription drug plans used by older persons, and to examine the association of prescription drug coverage types with the reported use of prescription drugs by older persons. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Data were obtained from a national survey of 1570 community-dwelling older persons (≥65 y) conducted in June 1998. A 2-part utilization model was estimated using logistic regression and ordinary least-squares regression. RESULTS: Data from 310 respondents were used for analysis. Overall, 66.1% of respondents reported having prescription drug insurance coverage. A majority (76.6%) of respondents having private drug coverage reported having a service benefit plan (requiring copayment or coinsurance amount to be paid for each prescription). The median copayment per brand name and generic prescription for persons reporting having coverage by service benefit plans was $10 and $5, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, a majority of older persons reported paying relatively small amounts out-of-pocket per prescription during 1998. Among persons who reported having drug insurance coverage, there were no statistically significant differences in the reported number of drugs used daily, regardless of out-of-pocket payment amount per prescription. Patient need and level of past drug use were significantly associated with both the likelihood of using any prescription drugs and the level of use among users. More research is needed to examine differences in drug expenditures and characteristics of drugs used across prescription drug insurance types for older persons.

Using Pharmacoepidemiology To Inform Drug Coverage Policy: Initial Lessons From A Two-Province Collaborative

2006 ◽  
Vol 25 (5) ◽  
pp. 1436-1443 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Michael Paterson ◽  
Andreas Laupacis ◽  
Ken Bassett ◽  
Geoffrey M. Anderson
Keyword(s):  
Drug Coverage ◽  
Coverage Policy
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