Not All Canadian Cancer Patients Are Equal—Disparities in Public Cancer Drug Funding across Canada
Canada lacks a national drug insurance plan. The home province or territory of a patient determines which cancer drugs are available on the public formulary, who is eligible for public coverage and what portion of the financial burden of cancer care falls to the individual. This narrative review des...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-03-01
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| Series: | Current Oncology |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1718-7729/29/3/166 |
| _version_ | 1827649418128523264 |
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| author | Ceilidh MacPhail Stephanie Snow |
| author_facet | Ceilidh MacPhail Stephanie Snow |
| author_sort | Ceilidh MacPhail |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Canada lacks a national drug insurance plan. The home province or territory of a patient determines which cancer drugs are available on the public formulary, who is eligible for public coverage and what portion of the financial burden of cancer care falls to the individual. This narrative review describes the current interprovincial disparities in access to cancer drugs across Canada. Health technology assessment (HTA) of drugs at a provincial and territory level is a closed process, does not necessarily follow the recommendations of national HTA and leads to further delays in drug access. The public coverage of take-home cancer drugs (THCDs) in Ontario and the Atlantic provinces is often fragmented, unnecessarily complex and a barrier to cancer drug access. Policy solutions to address inter-provincial formulary variation and poor access to THCDs are discussed. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T19:57:28Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e60f3af6ee80436385f2d6fde184c144 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1198-0052 1718-7729 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T19:57:28Z |
| publishDate | 2022-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Current Oncology |
| spelling | doaj.art-e60f3af6ee80436385f2d6fde184c1442023-11-24T00:53:26ZengMDPI AGCurrent Oncology1198-00521718-77292022-03-012932064207210.3390/curroncol29030166Not All Canadian Cancer Patients Are Equal—Disparities in Public Cancer Drug Funding across CanadaCeilidh MacPhail0Stephanie Snow1Medical Oncology, Department of Medicine, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS B3H 2Y9, CanadaMedical Oncology, Department of Medicine, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS B3H 2Y9, CanadaCanada lacks a national drug insurance plan. The home province or territory of a patient determines which cancer drugs are available on the public formulary, who is eligible for public coverage and what portion of the financial burden of cancer care falls to the individual. This narrative review describes the current interprovincial disparities in access to cancer drugs across Canada. Health technology assessment (HTA) of drugs at a provincial and territory level is a closed process, does not necessarily follow the recommendations of national HTA and leads to further delays in drug access. The public coverage of take-home cancer drugs (THCDs) in Ontario and the Atlantic provinces is often fragmented, unnecessarily complex and a barrier to cancer drug access. Policy solutions to address inter-provincial formulary variation and poor access to THCDs are discussed.https://www.mdpi.com/1718-7729/29/3/166oncologyuniversal health caredrug fundingCanada |
| spellingShingle | Ceilidh MacPhail Stephanie Snow Not All Canadian Cancer Patients Are Equal—Disparities in Public Cancer Drug Funding across Canada Current Oncology oncology universal health care drug funding Canada |
| title | Not All Canadian Cancer Patients Are Equal—Disparities in Public Cancer Drug Funding across Canada |
| title_full | Not All Canadian Cancer Patients Are Equal—Disparities in Public Cancer Drug Funding across Canada |
| title_fullStr | Not All Canadian Cancer Patients Are Equal—Disparities in Public Cancer Drug Funding across Canada |
| title_full_unstemmed | Not All Canadian Cancer Patients Are Equal—Disparities in Public Cancer Drug Funding across Canada |
| title_short | Not All Canadian Cancer Patients Are Equal—Disparities in Public Cancer Drug Funding across Canada |
| title_sort | not all canadian cancer patients are equal disparities in public cancer drug funding across canada |
| topic | oncology universal health care drug funding Canada |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1718-7729/29/3/166 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT ceilidhmacphail notallcanadiancancerpatientsareequaldisparitiesinpubliccancerdrugfundingacrosscanada AT stephaniesnow notallcanadiancancerpatientsareequaldisparitiesinpubliccancerdrugfundingacrosscanada |