Every Canadian deserves equal access to the prescription drugs they need: CLC
Despite our province’s reputation as the birthplace of medicare, prescription drug coverage in Saskatchewan remains somewhat of a patchwork of policies and deductibles.
According to statistics from the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC), one in three of Saskatchewan’s 573,700 workers do not have health benefits. About three-quarters of the province’s part-time workers do not have prescription drug coverage. It’s no wonder that 20 per cent of Saskatchewan residents surveyed said they, or someone in their household, do not take medication as prescribed because they can’t afford it.
This patchwork coverage can leave Saskatchewan residents without access to the medication they need to stay healthy. Canadians from coast-to-coast lack coverage either because they don’t have a prescription drug plan, or they have a plan with a high deductible and other potential limitations.
Representing 3.3 million Canadian workers, the CLC is the largest labour organization in Canada and brings together 56 affiliate unions, provincial and territorial labour federations, and community-based labour councils. Currently, one of the CLC’s top priorities is a universal prescription drug plan to be administered by the Canadian federal government. This type of program is typically referred to as pharmacare.
“Every Canadian should have equal access to the prescription drugs they need regardless of where they live. It’s time for a universal pharmacare program in Canada. Saskatchewan is the cradle of Canadian healthcare and I like to think that pharmacare is the next step in Tommy Douglas’ original vision,” says Hassan Yussuff, president of the CLC.
Yussuff immigrated to Canada from Guyana as a young man and worked as a trailer mechanic. He then worked his way up to heavy truck mechanic at General Motors before becoming a labour leader. Yussuff was re-elected for a second term as president of the CLC in May 2017 (terms are three years) and is based out of Ottawa.
The CLC emphasizes that Canada is the only developed country in the world with universal healthcare that does not also have prescription drug coverage. Meanwhile, the increasing cost of pharmaceuticals continues to exceed growth in wages and inflationary pressures.
“Our membership is very diverse. In Saskatchewan, the CLC encompasses potash mine workers, SaskPower workers, airline pilots, restaurant servers and many more. Some of these occupations have good benefits and some don’t. Our members struggle with the same prescription drug costs and health plan limitations as other Canadians,” says Yussuff.
“Canada has the third highest prescription drug costs in the world. Only Switzerland and the United States are higher. It makes no sense when Canadians have had medicare for decades.”
Health Canada found that Canadians on average spend $926 on prescriptions each year, through a combination of public, private and out-of-pocket spending.
And, according to the CLC’s statistics, 88 per cent of Saskatchewan residents strongly support establishing a universal prescription drug plan to cover all Canadians.
“Pharmacare is good for worker productivity and a competitive advantage for Canada and Canadian industry.” Yussuff cites New Zealand as a useful example of a country with a smaller population that implemented pharmacare. He says the result is that New Zealand residents can purchase both brand name and generic pharmaceuticals for reduced prices.
Arguments against pharmacare include physicians rationing access to new drugs and decreased research and development by pharmaceutical companies.
A slippery slope into the government paying for unproven or herbal-type treatments is another concern. It is thought that the mindful creation of the country’s formulary (list of approved medications) would address some of these issues.
How optimistic is Yussuff that pharmacare can be established for all Canadians? “I have never been more optimistic in my life. There is a different sense right now, a real openness, that pharmacare could happen in Canada. It’s something that the provinces and territories have been wrestling with for decades. Our universal system of healthcare is what defines us as Canadians.
“It should not be a choice that Canadians have to make – whether to pay rent, pay a utilities bill, buy groceries or fill a prescription. When someone is in hospital in Canada, prescription drugs are covered but when that patient is released they are on their own.”
As part of its 2018 Budget, the Trudeau government announced an Advisory Council on the Implementation of National Pharmacare. The Council is tasked with leading a national dialogue on how to implement affordable national pharmacare for Canadians and their families.
In 2004, CBC viewers chose Saskatchewan’s Tommy Douglas as the Greatest Canadian of all time for his role in establishing medicare.
Find out more about the CLC’s proposed universal prescription drug plan at www.aplanforeveryone.ca.
It should not be a choice that Canadians have to make – whether to pay rent, pay a utilities bill, buy groceries or fill a prescription. - HASSAN YUSSUF, president, Canadian Labour Congress