Access to Medicine

Improving access to and availability of innovative medicines, vaccines and treatments for Canadian patients is central to IMC’s work.

Timely access to new medicines saves lives, improves health outcomes, helps reduce healthcare costs, contributes to economic productivity, and makes Canada a more attractive destination for future investment and innovation.

Canada is faltering

Canada is falling behind other peer nations in timely access to new medicines and vaccines.

Less than 1 in 5 new medicines launched globally are available to Canadian patients on public plans.

It could get worse

Of the medicines that are available, Canadian patients wait twice as long (732 days) as patients in most peer countries for access to those medicines following Health Canada approval.

Canada ranks last in the G7 and 19th out of 20 peer OECD countries in the time it takes for patients to get access to new medicines following approval.

But we could change it

The PMPRB’s revised Draft Guidelines, if they remain unchanged, will introduce further uncertainty which could impact future drug launches, particularly those used to treat rare diseases and cancer.

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Breaking down and analyzing current events in the healthcare industry for our members, policy influencers and the Canadian public.

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Our  member companies, which range from fledgling start-ups to established organizations, are revolutionizing healthcare through the discovery and development of […]

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Informative content to keep you up to date on the most pressing issues facing our industry.