6 March 2019 - Canada should tiptoe in the direction of national pharmacare by creating a new drug agency and a master list of prescription medications that would be available to all, regardless of ability to pay, according to a federal advisory council.

But the Liberal-appointed panel’s interim report, obtained by The Globe and Mail, is silent on the big question of whether Canada should adopt a universal, single-payer pharmacare plan or simply plug the gaps in the existing system to ensure that all patients can afford to fill their prescriptions.

Eric Hoskins, a former Ontario health minister who leads the council, said in an interview that the panel would recommend a specific model for pharmacare in a final report to be released before the end of June, four months ahead of an election scheduled for October.

Read Globe and Mail article