Well being Minister Jean-Yves Duclos has put a six-month pause on new laws designed to decrease the price of patented medicines in Canada.
Well being Canada first introduced in 2019 that the Patented Medication Costs Evaluation Board (PMPRB) would change the way it units a worth cap on medicines in Canada in an effort to decrease excessively costly drug prices.
This would be the fourth delay in implementing these modifications.
The laws have been supposed to return into power at the start of January, however have been pushed again to July 1, 2022.
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Canada once more delays overhaul to patented drugs pricing system
Duclos mentioned the latest delay will enable the business, authorities and different gamers within the drug distribution system to focus efforts on combating the pandemic.
“To convey these amendments into power, within the context of a world pandemic, requires preparedness and session,” Duclos mentioned in an announcement Thursday.
“A delay additionally permits the federal government to additional have interaction stakeholders on the applying of those amendments throughout the altering pharmaceutical panorama.”
Well being Canada expects the amendments would save Canadians billions of {dollars} on patented medicine.
Life-sciences teams, affected person advocates and drug corporations have referred to as on the minister to rethink the modifications fully over fears a steep drop within the worth of medicine might make Canada an unattractive place to launch life-saving new therapies.
Different critics fear about stifling results on innovation within the biomedical area.
The delay comes as welcome information to the Finest Medicines Coalition, a gaggle that lobbies on behalf of 29 affected person teams for entry to secure, efficient medicines.
“I’m relieved that the brand new minister of well being and his cupboard colleagues are taking a pause,” mentioned John Adams, chairman of the board of the coalition. “Hopefully we’ll use this for time to replicate on the deserves of doing so many modifications all on the identical time.”
The federal NDP nonetheless weren’t joyful to see extra delays within the authorities’s efforts to decrease the value of medicine.
“Canadian households are struggling to make ends meet and costs are rising for every part. Provinces are seeing file numbers of COVID-19 instances and the federal government is asserting they gained’t do something to make prescribed drugs extra reasonably priced for individuals,” NDP well being critic Don Davies mentioned in an announcement.
Davies mentioned it was “supremely cynical” to make the announcement on Dec. 23, as individuals are busy preparing for Christmas and making an attempt to deal with the newest wave of the pandemic.
“The Liberal authorities must be ashamed of this,” he mentioned.
Duclos mentioned in his assertion the federal government stays dedicated to bettering entry and affordability of medicines in Canada, and can also be engaged on a nationwide technique for medicine for uncommon illnesses.
© 2021 The Canadian Press