Innovative technology to monitor glucose levels for patients with diabetes offers improved health outcomes, reduced absenteeism and improved productivity, said Rick Siemens, certified diabetes educator pharmacist, during a webinar in June hosted by Benefits Canada and sponsored by Dexcom. The roles of pharmacists in Canada are evolving. Siemens said he spends most of his time […]
While the rates of drug and disability claims are returning to their pre-pandemic levels, employers are still contending with the impact of the coronavirus crisis on their benefits plans. Following the declaration of the pandemic in March 2020, there was a subsequent surge in drug claims attributed to medication stockpiling, said Frédéric Leblanc, strategic advisor […]
Approximately 10 per cent of Canadians live with diabetes and one in 300 children live with Type 1 diabetes, according to Dr. Angelo Simone, a paediatric endocrinologist at Trillium Health Partners, during a webinar hosted by Benefits Canada and sponsored by Abbott in April. As a parent caring for two children living with Type 1 […]
When People Corp. started looking into reducing its claims numbers related to chronic disease, it decided to tackle what Judith Plotkin, vice-president of health and wellness solutions, called “the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse:” diabetes, obesity, heart disease and high blood pressure. The four conditions are comorbidities not only with each other but other afflictions […]
From a plan-manager perspective, eight per cent of plan members are living with diabetes, said Dr. Bruce Perkins, professor in the division of endocrinology and metabolism at the University of Toronto, during Benefits Canada’s Face to Face Drug Plan Management Forum on Dec. 9, 2020. He said risk-factor management is necessary when it comes to […]
Plan sponsors have to move beyond benefits plan reporting and dig into analytics to better understand medication non-adherence and the top disease states affecting their workforces. “Leveraging plan-specific data can help answer the fundamental questions needed to manage your benefits program,” said Shawn O’Brien, Telus Health’s principal of data enablement and drug, health, dental product roadmaps, during a session at Benefits […]
Toronto-based disease prevention technology company Newtopia Inc. is introducing a product suite aimed at preventing, reversing and slowing the progression of three chronic conditions. Targeting plan members of employer-sponsored health plans, the tools aim to assist users with hypertension, type 2 diabetes and weight management. They combine human interaction, virtual care, digital tools and data science to deliver personalized […]
On May 21, Benefits Canada hosted a webinar to explore the coronavirus pandemic’s impact on chronic disease in the workplace, as well as how virtual solutions can support employee health through this unprecedented time. All employers are currently facing the same concerns, said Marie-Josée Le Blanc, a partner at Mercer, during the webinar. Pointing to the 2019 […]
On May 12, Benefits Canada hosted a webinar to discuss the pharmaceutical industry’s efforts during the coronavirus crisis, as well as some key policy issues for Canadian insurers and their potential impact from the private-payer perspective. Since the end of April, 139 coronavirus treatments have been under investigation and Health Canada has approved several clinical trials […]
Private drug plans saw a slight uptick in costs in 2019 due to the increased use of specialty drugs and higher price points for traditional medications, according to Express Scripts Canada’s annual drug trends report. The report found private drug plan spending per claimant increased one per cent over 2018’s figures. Plans’ annual spend per claimant on […]