Canada's NDP

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February 13th, 2019

Jagmeet Singh Pushes for More Affordable Medication Now

BURNABY – On Wednesday, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh called on the Trudeau government to implement immediate measures to lower the cost of prescription drugs for Canadians and make pharmaceutical companies more accountable to patients.

“While big pharmaceutical companies have record profits, a growing number of Canadian families are facing tough choices when it comes to their medications. The Trudeau government is choosing to allow Canadians to be forced to pay sky-high prices for drugs, rather than go up against the big pharmaceutical companies,” said Singh. “Canadians deserve a government that is on their side, a government that is willing to stand up to pharmaceutical companies and put forward solutions to reduce the cost of medication right now.”

After meeting with Pharmaceutical lobbyists more than 680 times, the Trudeau government announced it would indefinitely postpone their promise to fix the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board which would reduce drug prices by as much as 20%.

Singh is demanding the Liberal’s 2019 budget delivers more affordable prescription drugs for all Canadians by fixing the system now and by forcing drug companies to disclose the confidential price rebates that they offer to public and private drug coverage payers.

“SNC Lavalin isn’t the only massive corporation getting a sweetheart deal from Prime Minister Trudeau. The Trudeau government is actively working to protect the profits of big pharmaceutical companies while Canadians pay some of the highest drug costs amongst all OECD countries,” added NDP Health Critic Don Davies (Vancouver Kingsway). “New Democrats are not afraid to take on big corporations to make life more affordable for people. These changes to the way we price drugs in Canada would have an immediate impact and help millions of Canadians.”