An upcoming Sun Life Canada drug plan change that will be implemented outside of plan sponsors’ renewal periods is calling attention to the practice of block-level contract amendments. Sun Life is set to implement the first phase of its reference drug program on Oct. 1, which the insurer says will help plan sponsors with drug plan sustainability by creating categories […]
Over the past four years, total drug costs adjudicated by HBM+ have risen from about $1.2 billion to $1.5 billion, while the number of claimants has increased from 1.7 million to more than two million. The inaugural drug trends and strategic insights report by the health benefits manager, a division of Green Shield Canada, examined drug […]
Claims for medications treating mental-health issues like anxiety and depression reached 97 per cent of 2019’s total claims volume by the end of August 2020, according to new data from Express Scripts Canada. In addition, 2020 has seen a 20 per cent increase in claimants for medications relating to depression compared to 2019. “For the remainder of […]
Plan sponsors have to move beyond benefits plan reporting and dig into analytics to better understand medication non-adherence and the top disease states affecting their workforces. “Leveraging plan-specific data can help answer the fundamental questions needed to manage your benefits program,” said Shawn O’Brien, Telus Health’s principal of data enablement and drug, health, dental product roadmaps, during a session at Benefits […]
The Federal Court has upheld reforms to the Patented Medicines Pricing Review Board that updated the board’s reference countries for drug pricing and required it to review three new economic factors when determining whether patented medicines are excessively priced. The court ruled against an argument by Innovative Medicines Canada and 16 pharmaceutical companies in their […]
Private drug plans saw the largest yearly increase in their average eligible costs in 2019, according to Telus Health’s annual drug trends report. The report attributed the rise to a jump in the use and cost of specialty drugs and a growth in younger Canadians using medication for mental-health challenges. It also noted the repeal of the OHIP+ program […]
Most (79 per cent) plan sponsors said they have at least one major concern about their health benefits plan, with this increasing to 89 per cent for employers with 500 or more workers, according to the 2020 Sanofi Canada health-care survey. The top concerns include drug plan sustainability (42 per cent), dental plan sustainability (39 […]
Nearly half (49 per cent) of Canadian plan members said they’re confident their group benefits plan will cover medications for serious diseases such as cancer and diabetes, which cost between $1,000 and $10,000 per month, according to the 2020 Sanofi Canada health-care survey. When presented with the scenario of a drug that can treat or […]
While 55 per cent of Canadian plan members take at least one medication on a regular basis, this increases to 70 per cent among those with a chronic condition and/or chronic pain and 87 per cent among those in poor health, according to the 2020 Sanofi Canada health-care survey. In addition, 23 per cent of […]
As reported earlier this month, the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board has published a new draft of its guidelines and launched a 30-day written consultation period. While the law and regulations have already been passed, the implementation has been delayed from July 1, 2020 to Jan. 1, 2021. The new draft guidelines are in response […]