EXCLUSIVE: US policy compelling some drug companies to stall medicine rollouts in Canada
Nearly 50 life-extending, enriching or saving drugs have cancelled or delayed their Canadian launches in the past year; some of which, were already approved by Health Canada. “Canadians need to know that in the not-too-distant future, the cutting-edge medications that would help them with their rare disease may simply not be available to them,” says […]
Nearly 50 life-extending or saving drugs have been halted or delayed in Canada over the past year, according to Dr. Michelle Hladunewich, a nephrologist and Physician-in-Chief at Sunnybrook Health Sciences. She attributes this to the U.S. President Trump's Most Favoured Nation (MFN) policy, which dictates that Americans pay the highest price for prescription drugs.
Dr. Bettina Hamelin, President and CEO of Innovative Sciences Canada, explained that the MFN policy identified Canada as one of eight countries with the lowest drug prices in the Western world, thereby benefiting from these low prices. She emphasized that this is unfair and that the most favoured nations should contribute fairly to innovation.
The costs involved in bringing a new medication to market average $3.5 billion and take ten to fifteen years. These expenses are often recouped in the U.S., where drug prices are significantly higher than in other Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development countries. Dr. Hladunewich stated that this policy could force drug prices in Canada to rise considerably, potentially impacting the availability of certain medications and leading to discussions about public healthcare policy in Canada.
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