Insurance Association Warns Employers They Could Cut Private Drug Plans Due to Pharmacare
Canadian insurers expressed concerns to a Senate committee about potential cutbacks to workplace benefits if the Liberal government’s pharmacare bill is passed into law.
During testimony on Oct. 2, Stephen Frank, CEO of the Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association, stated, “Don’t discount the risk that people are going to lose as much as they are going to gain potentially in this legislation. We are already having those discussions.”
Frank predicted “enormous risks” for the approximately 27 million Canadians with workplace drug plans if the bill is enacted, as reported by Blacklock’s Reporter.
He added, “The bill will result in practical and legal barriers to our ability to provide Canadians with the drug benefits they currently have in value.”
An Act Respecting Pharmacare,
proposes coverage of some diabetes and contraception medication with a commitment to work towards national universal pharmacare. The legislation is currently under review by Senate committees.
had threatened to withdraw
from the agreement if the Liberals failed to pass pharmacare legislation by March 1, but a deal was struck a week before the deadline.
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Frank detailed that employers had inquired about discontinuing coverage for diabetes and contraception drugs due to the proposed legislation.
He emphasized, “For the majority of Canadians, this legislation, as it is currently written, will eliminate existing prescription drug coverage paid for by employers.”
Senator Patti LaBoucane-Benson questioned Frank about whether employers would negotiate drug plans. Frank noted that most businesses are too small to negotiate and typically opt for pre-packaged plans.
In response to the testimony, Health Minister Mark Holland criticized it as “fear mongering” and “a bunch of malarkey.”
Holland said, “I’ve got to try to wash that away, that nonsense. This [bill] was very carefully negotiated. It was done over a long period of time by two different political parties.”
He also expressed hope that the Senate would approve the pharmacare bill by Thanksgiving, aiming to initiate the roll-out of the program swiftly.
During a testimony on May 23 before the House of Commons health committee, Holland assured Canadians that they would not lose their workplace drug coverage if the bill is passed.
He stated, “To drop your plan because a portion of medicine is covered, it’s just not logical. No company would do that.”
When questioned by Conservative MP Laila Goodridge about the potential forced cancellation of existing plans by employers, Holland replied, “there is nothing that would change that.”
