Alberta Health warned over pain medication
Officials told $80M purchase could be too late to meet demand
EDMONTON Alberta Health officials were warned that the province's $80-million purchase of children's pain medication from Turkey could run into delays that would erode demand for the imported supply, according to internal emails acquired by Postmedia.
On Dec. 6, 2022, Premier Danielle Smith announced her government was planning to import five million bottles of children's acetaminophen and ibuprofen amid an acute shortage across Canada.
The first shipment arrived in Edmonton six weeks later and was made available for use in hospitals, but the medication wasn't available for general sale in pharmacies, and only then behind the counter, until March 20, 2023.
By then, the shortages that had been apparent in the fall had largely abated several weeks earlier after the federal government imported 2.9 million units of medication for use Canada-wide and manufacturers increased production.
Months earlier, a government budget analyst warned that scenario could play out in a Nov. 30, 2022 email to a director in Alberta Health's professional and industry relations unit, with the subject line reading, “*urgent* bullets for financial risk.”
“While contracting practices mitigate financial risk, there still is the risk of delay in receiving medications,” it states.
“Approval could come at a time when demand is tapering and supply is increasing. There is a risk that approvals will delay timely access and the product will no longer be required in significant quantities.”
It goes on to caution that approvals must be secured before the medication could arrive in Canada.
“In the case of pharmaceuticals, the exporting manufacturer and country will not allow the shipment to leave the country of origin until approvals are in place.”
Health Minister Adriana Lagrange was not made available for an interview Monday.
Her office issued a statement saying the purchase “provided long-term reassurance to parents, health care providers and Alberta Health Services (AHS) facilities.”
“Alberta procured a minimum quantity from the manufacturer to secure favourable pricing, accommodate production adjustments, and facilitate the manufacturer's compliance with Health Canada standards.”
AHS has received 1.5 million bottles of the imported medication, or about 30 per cent of the total order, although Health Canada has said it is unwilling to approve further shipments.
Most of the medication that has already arrived is set to expire around 20 months from now, in January 2026.
Alberta Health says it's monitoring the supply and evaluating options, but that no decisions have been made on what to do with the surplus medication.
It adds expiry dates on future products ordered under the same contract would be later than January 2026.
The emails are part of a 200-page set of documents obtained via a freedom of information request.
It also includes a briefing note prepared for then-minister of health Jason Copping to use in pitching other provincial health ministers on purchasing Alberta's imported product. The proceeds from any such sales would be used to help offset the purchase of the imported medication.
“Alberta is seeking permission from Health Canada to distribute this surplus supply to our provincial and territorial partners to address their ongoing market shortages,” the Jan. 30, 2023, note states.
“By sharing this information, the hope is it will assist in other jurisdictions' conversations with Health Canada should they be interested in acquiring a portion of the supply.”
Prior reporting from Postmedia revealed that pitch was made to other provinces but was met with little enthusiasm.
Some of the provinces cited Parol's lower dosage, and the accompanying risk of measurement errors, compared to typical acetaminophen, for their disinterest, with B.C. stating it “will not accept any products that have a different strength than the Canadian product.”
Ontario wrote in late February to say supplies there had improved and there was no need for more product.
AHS directed hospitals to stop using the medication and revert to standard dosage acetaminophen last July.
Parol was unpopular with hospital health-care workers, one of whom described it to Postmedia as “not an ideal product” due to its distinct dosage as well as its thicker consistency, which could clog the feeding tubes of some patients.