Dear Editor,
We have an opportunity to implement universal single-payer pharmacare as parties make promises to improve access to prescription medication.
Our criteria should be clear: is your pharmacare plan universal, public, comprehensive, accessible, and portable? The answer to that question will determine my vote.
As a recently retired physician, I know that access to medications can reduce health care costs (by preventing and delaying disease progression) and prevent suffering of patients. Having nationwide purchasing of medications, we will have greater leverage to demand lower costs from the very greedy pharmaceutical companies (most pharmaceutical companies selling in Canada are US and European companies).
In fact, I support national manufacture of essential medications to control costs.
Robert Winston, MSc, MD, FACP, FRCP(C), Surrey