Prescriptions Skyrocket Case Analysis

Canada’s health care system “can be described as a publicly-funded, privately-provided, universal, comprehensive, affordable, single-payer, provincially administered national health care system” (Bernard, 1992, p.103). Health care in Canada is provincial responsibility, with the Canada Health act being a federal legislation (Bernard, 1992, p. 102). Federal budget cuts, has caused various problems within Medicare such as increased waiting times and lack of new technology. Another problem with Medicare is that The Canada Heath Act does not cover expenditures for prescriptions drugs. All these issue has caused individuals to suggest making Medicare privatized. Although, Canada’s health care system consists of shortcomings, our universal

All health care in Canada is “free” for insured services, those provided through hospitals and physicians (O 'Neill, 2008). With the enactment of the Canada Health Act, citizens may choose their own family physician and do not have to pay premiums, deductibles, or co-payments. Other services such as prescription drugs or dental care must be paid for either out-of-pocket or through private insurances. Because of this “free” care, O’Neill (2008) argued that the demand for health care becomes unrestrained causing costs to surge. This inexplicably triggered shortages in all provinces and explicit rationing had to be implemented in Canada for certain medical treatments and technology (O’Neill, 2008). The high demand and severe shortages caused a large increase in private facilities providing core services.

Canadian Institute for Health Information. (2014). Drug use among seniors on public drug programs in Canada, 2012, 9-10, 12-15. Retrieved from https://secure.cihi.ca/free_products/Drug_Use_in_Seniors_on_Public_Drug_Programs_EN_web_Oct.pdf

The rise in costs of prescription medicines affects all sectors of the health care industry, including private insurers, public programs, and patients. Spending on prescription drugs continues to be an important health care concern, particularly in light of rising pharmaceutical costs, the aging population, and increased use of costly specialty drugs. In recent history, increases in prescription drug costs have outpaced other categories of health care spending, rising rapidly throughout the latter half of the 1990s and early 2000s. (Kaiseredu.org, 2012).

Today, Canada is the only industrialized nation without a national pharmacare plan (“Campaign for a National Drug Plan” 1). Currently, each province has its own pharmacare plan and this creates differences in medication prices across the nation. Price depends on drug efficacy, how commonly the drug is used, and to what extent the provincial government decides to subsidize the drug. Overall, drug coverage in Canada depends on a person’s age, income, and the province they live in. Today, one in ten Canadians cannot afford the medications that their doctors prescribe (“Pharmacare 2020” 2). Their lack of

There are restriction on how long one must reside in the province in order to maintain their health benefits coverage .most provinces have similar coverage for many of the benefits. In most cases income determines whether or not one is eligible for a specific benefit coverage and also determines the cost related to it, if any. according to the recent study conducted more than three quarters of the household who have at least one senior have prescription drug spending at an annual avenger of more than $500.(14). As a result of non-uniform drug plans in some provinces, seniors must pay a copayment, i.e. the portion of prescription that is paid every time a prescription is filled. while in other provinces seniors must pay an annual premium where as some have combinations of both copayments and premiums .(14) Canada is a fast aging society , in which it Is common for a senior to developed a chorionic medical condition which would increase their drug intake . It’s normal for a senior to have an average intake of 12-14 drugs a day (15).according to a recent static Canada survey, prescription drugs make up 27.3% of out of pocket spending for senior households (16).and yet many candies underestimate the cost of their treatments in senior age. The average $500 dollars that every household with at least one senior spends does not cover the cost of these expensive treatments for serious illnesses. Beside these expenses on medications mobility aids are also a common expense for seniors which may cost up to $10,000 and in Ontario alone only 76% of these cost are covered as long as they are prescribed by a health professional, and the other 25% are to rely on charitable groups or their long time saving plans, which in this case would not last

When you think about health care cost and what was done in the past to help people who could not afford it to be able to get coverage now. Many people will not be able to afford to get the mandatory coverage and if they do, they will not be able to afford to see the physician or take the medication that they needed. Some of the plans worked and others helped for short periods. With other countries, finding ways to make it work for them and stakeholders more worried in the U.S.A. over their assets. With the rise of the older generation living longer but having more health issues is a reason to look into getting better coverage that is affordable for all for health care.

Anyone who has purchased prescription medications has probably wondered why they cost so much, and rightfully so. Medication prices in the United States have been on a steady increase for decades, however, prices have been drastically increasing as of recent. Pharmaceutical companies have tried to justify these price increases due to the demand, the high cost of research, and the high costs of development and approval. Notwithstanding, the extent to which the prices have increased is not justifiable. Americans should be against these high medication prices and take action because pharmaceutical companies are taking advantage of our healthcare system in order to capitalize from the sick. In order shed some light on this issue, the magnitude, scope, and consequences of these prices must be examined.

Anyone who has purchased prescription medications has probably wondered why they cost so much, and rightfully so. Medication prices in the United States have been on a steady increase for decades, however, prices have been drastically increasing as of recent. Pharmaceutical companies have tried to justify these price increases due to the demand, the high cost of research, and the high costs of development and approval. Notwithstanding, the extent to which the prices have increased is not justifiable. Americans should be against these high medication prices and take action because pharmaceutical companies are taking advantage of our health care system in order to capitalize from the sick. In order shed some light on this issue, we must examine the magnitude, scope, and consequences of these rises in price.

The U.S. health care system faces challenges that indicate that the people urgently need to be reform. Attention has rightly focused on the approximately 46 million Americans who are uninsured, and on the many insured Americans who face rapid increases in premiums and out-of-pocket costs. As Congress and the Obama administration consider ways to invest new funds to reduce the number of Americans without insurance coverage, we must simultaneously address shortfalls in the quality and efficiency of care that lead to higher costs and to poor health outcomes. To do otherwise casts doubt on the feasibility and sustainability of coverage expansions and also ensures that our current health care system will continue to have large gaps even for those with access to insurance coverage.

Between 2001 and 2011, the average patient’s out-of-pocket (OOP) cost for brand-name prescriptions rose by more than 80% (Tungol, et al., 2012, p. 691). The increasing OOP costs have contributed to a decrease

Although Canadians were largely supportive of the proposed national pharmacare plan, most said they would be concerned if their current private plan was replaced by a national pharmacare program with less coverage, if it increased costs to governments because patients use more prescription drugs than they do now, and of the ability of governments to administer the plan efficiently and effectively - these concerns will later be covered in the ethics section (Canadian Pharmacists Association, 2015).  Many political parties, like the Liberals and NDP, have realized the significance of universal drug coverage to the point that they have included it in campaign promises for both federal and provincial elections. The NDP has even introduced a motion in the House of Commons that gives the Liberal government one year to begin negotiations with the provinces in order to implement universal pharmaceutical drug coverage for all Canadians.  Additionally, both parties’ Ontario provincial election campaigns prominently feature contrasting pharmacare plans: the NDP will offer universal coverage but is limited to 125 medications deemed essential by an independent committee with the commitment to expand the coverage over time as savings are realized, while the Liberals have introduced improvements to the Ontario Drug Plan to cover over 4,400 drugs for the province's four million children and young adults (Fraser, 2017).

The proposed solution from current Alberta government would see the health care system incorporate the private sector. The government Most of all the government is looking to decrease cost, increase accessibility and efficiency. *****

In response to a loss of revenue from Medicare Part D prescription drug payments, drug manufacturers may increase the cost of pharmaceuticals elsewhere, such as the private sector. This escalation in prescription drug prices could result in the price of different insurance policies to increase as well, placing a greater burden on private insurance holders. Specific, quantifiable predictions regarding possible payment increases for privately insured individuals have not been as well-established as has the overall trend of a probable increase in these costs.

Canada’s system is another great example of the affordability of UHC. According to the World Health Organization, check-ups, medications and surgeries are thirty to sixty percent cheaper in Canada than in the U.S. (Merino 132). Why? Well, Diane Francis, author of the National Post article “LBJ Invented Canada’s Superior Health System”, offers one explanation. Francis argues that in Canada drugs are cheaper because Canadian provinces buy the drugs in bulk through a centralized system, unlike the U.S., which makes the government programs Medicare and Medicaid buy from different sources (Merino 132). Because of the monopoly the Canadian government has on the pharmaceutical industry, the price of drugs can be manipulated by the government, making