Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today I have questions for the Minister of Health and it’s going to deal with pharmaceutical and prescription drugs, and I’ll be very easy on the Minister, Mr. Speaker.
The term “off-label use” is a term used in the industry where it means a drug has been discovered to have properties of use or therapeutic use for something that was outside of its intended use. In a lot of cases, drug companies don’t go to the case of actually making proof of claim because of costs. Drug benefits such as Blue Cross, extended health will look at this synopsis and make their decision whether a drug is covered or not. So again, off-label use does have a merit out in practice.
My question for the Minister is: Does the department have a program in place to deal with the therapeutic advantage of using off-label drugs for therapy and is there a process in place for people in the Northwest Territories to go to get these prescriptions covered? Thank you.
Thank you, Mr. Dolynny. The Minister of Health and Social Services, Mr. Beaulieu.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As Member’s may know, Cabinet direction for all extended health benefits, any health benefits that we provide, and as far as drugs and other services go, are in line with the non-insured health benefits that are provided by the federal government for First Nations. So if we were to go off of that system, that would be contrary to Cabinet direction. But we do have a system to look at these cases on a one-on-one basis. Thank you.
Thank you. The Minister is correct; and non-insured health benefits are used as a means for formulary design. However, that system does have some gaping holes in the process and currently, right now, if a patient was to question viability of a drug being covered, it goes to Inuvik to extended benefits for review and it is reviewed, hopefully, by an independent source or a professional source. Does the Minister have information whether or not there is a process for a review that goes outside the formulary design of intention? Thank you.
Thank you. At this point any drugs that are considered to be off-label drugs that have benefits other than what’s indicated and approved by Health Canada, is on a one-off basis, like I indicated. It’s requested by the physician so that an individual that is prescribed drugs and is having a positive effect in another area, the exception can be requested by a physician. The physician’s request will then go to Alberta Blue Cross for review and then it will come back to Health and Social Services for consideration.
Thank you. So what we’re hearing here is that there is a peer review process involved, that physicians are involved and it goes to Inuvik for further review. But can the Minister indicate to the House if there is an unfavourable response from this peer review, is there an appeals process that a patient or another health care provider can follow in order to get that drug covered? Thank you.
Thank you. Because this has occurred several times over the last few years, the department is actually now currently working on an appeal, a formal appeal process that we’re hoping to get developed very soon. I don’t know the exact intention or the date of when this formal appeal process will be completed, but we are currently working on that process now.
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. Final, short supplementary, Mr. Dolynny.
Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s very encouraging to hear that we are working towards an appeals program, but that could take several months, maybe years, to achieve. In the interim, can the Minister make a commitment to look, on a case-by-case basis, if it is brought to the department to look at those patients who are waiting in the wings patiently to hear from this government, so that they can get their drugs approved for their therapies that are not previously being covered by our programs?
Recognizing the deviation from the NIHB formulary could potentially cost more money than expected and have other impacts, but I will commit to continue to look at off-label drugs and the positive impacts of off-label drugs on a one-off basis.
Thank you, Mr. Beaulieu. The honourable Member for Mackenzie Delta, Mr. Blake.
