Pharmacare in Canada: Financial Implications of Alternative Models for Public and Private Payers

Document Highlights:

Pharmacare in Canada: Financial Implications of Alternative Models for Public and Private Payers estimates the change in drug reimbursement of three alternative pharmacare scenarios, assuming a national pharmacare plan is introduced in 2020: 1) Public Plan as First Payer, 2) The Quebec Program, and 3) The British Columbia Program.

The burden of drug costs could shift considerably, regardless of the model. In scenario 1, the burden is shifted almost entirely to public plans, with the costs being borne by the federal government or by the individual provincial/territorial governments. In scenarios 2 and 3, there is also a shift to the public plans, but to a lesser extent than in scenario 1. Findings of this research are meant to help inform discussions on the implementation of national pharmacare.