Joint effort to keep seniors' drug costs low a 'huge advantage' for N.S., says Glavine

Nova Scotia will benefit from an agreement among the four Atlantic provinces to keep prescription drugs costs low for people 65 and older on provincial drug programs, Health Minister Leo Glavine said Monday.

It's one of the key pledges that emerged from Monday's meeting between the region's premiers in Steady Brook, N.L. Nova Scotia Premier Stephen McNeil attended the meeting via teleconference.

Glavine said the idea would involve the provinces working together to buy prescription drugs and medications as a region instead of as individual provinces.

"We will gain real advantages," he said in an interview. "The advantages when we save, we can keep the premium and co-pay for seniors at a low rate while at the same time adding new medications."

'A huge advantage'

In a joint statement, the Atlantic premiers said the region's health-care system faces significant challenges because of an "aging population and relatively high incidence of chronic disease."

The premiers have found a way to save money in the past through collaboration.

Last year, they joined forces to buy diagnostic health-care equipment. It was a move Glavine said saved Nova Scotia about $2 million.

"If we started to capture the power of 2.3 million Atlantic Canadians in procuring medications, then it's a huge advantage for us," he said.

'Great savings to be had'

Glavine said one of the first steps will be creating a list of medicines prescribed in each province. Nova Scotia is leading the initiative, he added.

"There are great savings to be had and ultimately, what we all want is benefits to our citizens."

Planned consultations on Nova Scotia's Seniors' Pharmacare Program will be put on hold in light of the new Atlantic approach.

There will be no change to the program for 2018-2019 and it was previously announced the program wouldn't change in 2017-2018.