The changing promise of universal healthcare: Canada’s national pharmacare debate – whitepaper 

The details of the proposed national pharmacare program are yet to be determined. A pharmacare working group will hold consultations with various stakeholders.

It’s clear that the status quo is unsustainable. The patchwork of provincial plans and group benefit plans is falling behind Canadians’ rising expectations. How do we ensure that every Canadian has access to life-saving specialty drugs? How do we deliver personalized healthcare, while dealing with rising costs? How do we cover contingent workers?

A national pharmacare program could be the solution. The question is: what would need to be considered as the government defines a coverage model, funding model and its vision for the future?