Close to 17% of Canada’s population is 65 or older. By 2031, Statistics Canada projects that one in four Canadians will be seniors.

With Canada’s population aging, maintaining the status quo for seniors health care is not an option. Our health care system was designed a half-century ago, and it has not kept pace with the issues of the elderly in Canada. Today, seniors need better solutions, services and support.

Faced with that reality, the Canadian Medical Association (CMA) has been demanding that a national seniors strategy be implemented by 2019.

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An article published an article in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ) estimates the cost of universal public coverage of prescription drugs in Canada. The authors are Steven G. Morgan PhD, Michael Law PhD, Jamie R. Daw BHSc, MSc, Liza Abraham BSc, and Danielle Martin MD, MPubPol.

This is a summary of that article.

With the exception of Canada, all countries with universal health insurance systems provide universal coverage of prescription drugs. Progress toward universal public drug coverage in Canada has been slow, in part because of concerns about the potential costs. The authors sought to estimate the cost of implementing universal public coverage of prescription drugs in Canada.

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The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom recently appointed one of her ministers, Tracey Crouch, to lead an inter-governmental group tasked with countering a growing epidemic of social isolation and loneliness.

The appointment was made in response to a report published by the Commission on Loneliness, set up to honor the late Jo Cox, a Labour MP who had campaigned about loneliness and was murdered by a right wing extremist in 2016.

In her announcement Prime Minister May said: “For far too many people, loneliness is the sad reality of modern life.” and “I want to confront this challenge for our society and for all of us to take action to address the loneliness endured by the elderly, by carers, by those who have lost loved ones – people who have no one to talk to or share their thoughts and experiences with.”

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A majority of seniors or soon-to-be retirees are concerned whether their finances will be able to stretch far enough to cover serious future health issues. Take for example, home care, which is partially covered for those who qualify. Consider the fact 8 million Canadians provide care for loved ones, with 8 in 10 of them Read more about Seniors Worried About Healthcare Costs in Retirement[…]

The 2017 Metro Vancouver Homeless Count counted the number of homeless people over a 24-hour period on March 8, 2017. The count highlighted the increasing number of seniors that are experiencing homelessness A total of 380 seniors between 55 and 65 years and another 176 seniors above the age of 65 years responded to the Read more about Vancouver 2017 Homeless Count[…]

NAFTA re-negotiations may impact Canada’s push for Universal Pharmacare. U.S. trade negotiators favour the interests of pharmaceutical manufacturers over government and consumers. In the 1980s, the U.S. pharmaceutical industry successfully lobbied the U.S. government to make the elimination of early generic drug competition in Canada part of the Canada-U.S. free trade agreement. In the 1990s, The Read more about NAFTA Negotiations Threaten Canada’s Push for Universal Pharmacare[…]

Summary of the Globe and Mail article Quebec expects to save millions with overhaul of generic-drug purchasing process Quebec will seek competitive bids from companies for exclusive supply contracts for generic prescription drugs In Quebec, pharmacists were often rebated up to 45 per cent of the price from the drug companies – fees that are Read more about Quebec Implementing Single Purchaser for Generic Drugs[…]

Summary of the Globe and Mail Article The pressure of Big Pharma Financial conflicts of interest are commonplace on guideline committees; 46% of the panelists involved in nine guideline documents received funding from companies that might benefit from a positive mention of their drugs In 3 cases, more than 75 per cent of the panelists Read more about Canadian Drug Companies Conflict of Interest in Clinical Practice Guidelines[…]

Summary of the Globe and Mail article Canadian drug makers assailed for lack of transparency over payments Ten large Canadian drug companies paid $48 million to doctors and health-care-organizations in 2016 The payment disclosure was voluntary and was an aggregate number; critics say this is not transparent and meaningless Only 10 of the 45 members Read more about Canadian Drug Companies Payments to Doctors and Health-Care Organizations[…]

A very successful PharmaCare Form was held in Vancouver Quadra on May 26th 2017. This event was sponsored by the Quadra Granville Seniors Group; a group that works with seniors and the community to influence all levels of government to develop and implement supportive policies for seniors. The Forum was attended by 90 people from Read more about PharmaCare Forum[…]