Telus Health is partnering with Canada Life Assurance Co. and Innomar Strategies Inc. to launch Canada’s an electronic drug prior authorization solution. The pilot program will test the digitized process to fulfill prior authorization submissions for real prescription cases and evaluate its impact on process efficiency, consistency of adjudication results and the overall plan sponsor and member […]
The costs of employer-provided health plans in Canada are expected to rise seven per cent next year, outpacing general inflation by more than five per cent, according to a new report by Aon Canada. Contributing factors include higher drug prices, the impact of non-communicable health risks and the continued introduction of new and expensive therapies. Indeed, […]
The Patented Medicine Prices Review Board published its new guidelines on Friday. The guidelines, which will take effect on Jan. 1, 2021, aim to modernize Canada’s pricing framework for patented medicines. They explain the steps that will typically be taken by the PMPRB’s staff in assessing whether a patented medicine appears to be priced excessively in Canada. The […]
Medavie Blue Cross is launching a new drug management solution that will offer broader drug coverage while aiming to lower costs for group benefits plan members. The program, Rxperience, offers plan members open access to traditional drug benefits and specialty drug management via increased standardized core benefits, according to a press release. Read: Medavie Blue Cross […]
Benefits by Design Inc. and PocketPills are partnering on a digital pharmacy platform. Through the partnership, group plan members will be able to instantly connect with pharmacists and manage their medications online. PocketPills’ platform includes automation technology that improves the pharmacy workflow, making pharmacists more accessible to patients via phone or live chat, seven days a […]
An upcoming Sun Life Canada drug plan change that will be implemented outside of plan sponsors’ renewal periods is calling attention to the practice of block-level contract amendments. Sun Life is set to implement the first phase of its reference drug program on Oct. 1, which the insurer says will help plan sponsors with drug plan sustainability by creating categories […]
Over the past four years, total drug costs adjudicated by HBM+ have risen from about $1.2 billion to $1.5 billion, while the number of claimants has increased from 1.7 million to more than two million. The inaugural drug trends and strategic insights report by the health benefits manager, a division of Green Shield Canada, examined drug […]
Claims for medications treating mental-health issues like anxiety and depression reached 97 per cent of 2019’s total claims volume by the end of August 2020, according to new data from Express Scripts Canada. In addition, 2020 has seen a 20 per cent increase in claimants for medications relating to depression compared to 2019. “For the remainder of […]
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 […]
The Federal Court has upheld reforms to the Patented Medicines Pricing Review Board that updated the board’s reference countries for drug pricing and required it to review three new economic factors when determining whether patented medicines are excessively priced. The court ruled against an argument by Innovative Medicines Canada and 16 pharmaceutical companies in their […]