(Ottawa) Health Minister Mark Holland said the federal government is willing to add other drugs to the list of drugs covered by its insurance program.
Mr. Holland made these comments before a parliamentary committee studying the Liberal bill on drug insurance.
Conservative health critic Stephen Ellis asked the minister why semaglutide – a class of diabetes drugs – was not on the list of covered drugs.
The bill, introduced in February, charts a path toward a universal drug plan that covers medications and supplies for contraception and diabetes treatment.
It does not include Ozempic, a new semaglutide drug for diabetes that has been used as a weight loss drug in the absence of a suitable drug treatment alternative.
Holland said the current list represents an “absolute minimum” and the government is prepared to add to it based on negotiations with the provinces and the committee’s recommendations.
“If there are things that you think should be on that list, I’m actually very interested in having that conversation. I hope that means you support the bill,” Mr. Holland responded to Mr. Ellis.
The latter replied: “Yes, I don’t think we need to worry about that, because it’s a bad bill. »
It was one of several tense exchanges between Mr. Holland and Mr. Ellis, who questioned the minister on topics such as Canadians’ access to primary care and the time it takes to approve drugs in Canada.
Mr Holland challenged Mr Ellis to say what his party would do differently. “Could you tell us what your plan is to make sure that people who don’t have medication get it?” » he asked.
Mr. Ellis responded: “You will have the opportunity to ask me questions at some point when you are in opposition. »
The private sector is worried
The committee also heard from representatives of the insurance industry, who noted that the bill could disrupt existing private coverage for Canadians.
Stephen Frank, president and CEO of the Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association, said Holland indicated that Canadians with existing drug plans could continue to use them, but that the text of the bill was “ambiguous”.
“He keeps calling for a universal, single-payer drug plan in Canada, with no mention of employer benefit plans,” he said.
“Read in its entirety, the bill could create practical, and even legal, barriers to our ability to provide Canadians with the medications they currently benefit from. »