Marty Warren, United Steelworkers union National Director for Canada, issued the following statement following the announcement of a deal on Pharmacare:
Today marks a historic day for health care in Canada, as an agreement between the Liberal government and the NDP on Pharmacare is confirmed.
The steadfast efforts by the NDP will now pave the way for a universal national pharmacare program and represents an important step towards equitable access to prescription drugs for all Canadians.
For many years, Steelworkers, with the broader labour movement, have worked with the NDP to push for a universal, single-payer pharmacare plan, that would reduce the burden of expensive, inaccessible prescription drugs for Canadians.
The bill, to be tabled shortly, will establish the framework for a national Pharmacare program and will also introduce, in the short term, new coverage for contraception and diabetes treatment, addressing the urgent health care needs of Canadians.
With high inflation and people struggling to make ends meet, we can’t afford a dysfunctional drug coverage system that is unfair, inefficient, and costly. Canada is the only country with a universal public health insurance system that does not include prescription drug coverage, and Canadians pay the fourth-highest price in the world as a result.
This historic agreement underscores the importance of a single-payer system and refers to the Canada Health Act. The new plan will provide equal access and coverage for all Canadians, resulting in billions of dollars in savings.
The United Steelworkers union urges all parliamentarians to support this new universal public drug plan.
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