While growth in drug plan spending is forecast to remain in low single digits over the next few years, plan sponsors could do more to ensure value for the dollars they spend.
With ever-bloating drug plan costs, sponsors need bite-sized solutions to get costs under control
Drug plan costs are an ongoing concern for Canadian employers. Benefits Canada’s Face to Face Drug Plan Management Forum in Vancouver shows how plan sponsors out west are managing them.
Solutions to rising drug costs and unequal drug coverage are never easy. But that shouldn’t stop stakeholders from examining these issues to determine what can be done to improve the current system.
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Several large B.C. public sector unionized plans have recently bargained new drug plans that mimic BC PharmaCare coverage. While the net impact will take some time to assess, there are some considerations for plan sponsors contemplating similar changes.
Sick? Take a pill...or several. Canadians rely on medication to make them well when they are ill—and, for some people, to stay healthy. The medical system in Canada is treatment-based rather than preventative—the fact that full medical exams for healthy adults are no longer covered by OHIP reinforces that model.Employee benefits plans often follow this path as well and, ultimately, pay the price.
The specialty drugs for treating chronic conditions can be miraculously effective, but they come with a high price tag, and plan sponsors are pressured to both cover these drugs and find ways to achieve plan sustainability. At the first-ever Face to Face Drug Plan Management Forum in Vancouver on May 31, participants were encouraged to cross-examine drug plan management strategies for ways to alleviate costs. The half-day event—Changing With the Times: The New Face of Drug Plan Management—attracted more than 130 registrants to the Marriott Pinnacle Downtown.
Small business owners in Nova Scotia will likely be saving money on their prescription drug costs this year.
In 1977 the Benefits Canada tree was planted in the industry.