By Lydia Stewart Ferreira
Two Canadian think tanks – the C.D. Howe Institute and the Institute for Research on Public Policy – recently issued contradicting reports on whether prescription drug plans should be age-based or income-based.
As background, medications prescribed outside a Canadian hospital setting are not covered by Canada’s medicare system. They are financed through a patchwork of private and public drug insurance plans that only provide coverage for select populations. For example, up until the late 1990s, people 65 and older received universal, public drug coverage in most provinces. But with population aging, the public liability associated with age entitlements has become a major concern for governments. Four Canadian provinces have discontinued their age-based programs, which covered most of the cost of medications for seniors, and replaced them with income-based programs, which protect all residents against catastrophic drug costs. Other provinces have started to move or are considering moving in this direction.
The C.D. Howe Institute think tank concluded that provincial drug plan benefits based on age are ‘outdated’ and drug plan benefits should be based on income instead. “[I]ncome-based plans are a better alternative for cash-constrained provinces and offer more equitable access to public benefits.”