With Canada’s workforce in the midst of multiple significant demographic shifts, group benefits plans will need to evolve to meet the changing needs of workers, according to Shelley Sjoberg, assistant vice-president of group product development and support at Canada Life. Speaking during Benefits Canada’s 2024 Healthy Outcomes Conference, she pointed to Statistics Canada data that […]
As plan sponsors contend with high utilization of their drug plans and a host of costly new drugs coming to market, a variety of cost-containment measures can ensure plans remain sustainable while still supporting members. Plan sponsors’ annual drug plan spend has been steadily rising, said Martin Gascon, senior director of group benefits at Eckler […]
While migraine is a complex neurological condition that can significantly impact patients’ quality of life and ability to work, it’s also poorly understood and often accompanied by the weight of stigma, said Elizabeth Leroux, faculty lecturer at McGill University, during a session sponsored by Lundbeck at Benefits Canada’s 2024 Healthy Outcomes Conference. One in 10 Canadians […]
Plan sponsors are facing a chronic disease “tsunami” that is leading to higher benefits and drug plan spend and increasing disability claims. But the three root causes of this growing problem — undiagnosed health issues, the availability of primary and preventative health care and challenges navigating the health-care system — are issues plan sponsors are […]
With lyrics adapted to the tune of ‘Magic’ by Scottish pop group Pilot, the melody of ‘Oh, Oh, Oh, Ozempic’ is splashed across U.S. televisions in a snappy advertising campaign. The commercial push is likely unnecessary. Ozempic, one of the brand names of a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist medication used to treat type 2 diabetes, […]
Innovative Medicines Canada is calling on the federal government to introduce amendments to Bill C-64 that clarify the impact on all aspects of Canadians’ drug coverage. In a press release, the association urged the feds to ensure its new pharmacare program doesn’t disrupt existing coverage for the 27 million Canadians who are insured under a […]
Admiral Insurance’s award-winning benefits program is demonstrating how employers can use versatility to strike a fine balance between finding innovative solutions and maintaining plan sustainability. The organization was the winner in the Drug/Benefits Plan Innovation category of the 2024 Workplace Benefits Awards. “We’re honoured to win this award and be nominated in three categories,” says Allison Jost […]
The Canada Dental Care Plan will help make dental services more accessible for unionized employees who don’t currently have a dental program within their contract, says Sandeep Kakan, director of pension governance at Unifor. Kakan, who until recently was the union’s director of pension and benefits, says the new program has established a standard from which […]
A large majority (80 per cent) of Canadian employers feel it’s extremely (36 per cent) or somewhat challenging (44 per cent) to provide benefits in today’s economic climate, according to the 2024 Benefits Canada Healthcare Survey. However, three-quarters (77 per cent) of plan sponsors indicated their health benefits plan was extremely or very important to […]
Ontario’s Ministry of Health is consulting on the role of preferred pharmacy networks in the province’s employer-sponsored drug insurance sector to determine how these agreements impact plan members’ costs, choice, accessibility and access to medicine and quality of care. In its draft consultation paper, the ministry said a common concern among consumers is when PPNs are closed and […]