Canadian Health Coalition

DRUG INDEX

1.Total spending on drugs in Canada in 2005: $24.8 billion
2.Increase in prescription drug costs in Canada between 1994 and 2004: 62.3%
3.Percentage of new, more expensive drugs in Canada (2000-2004) that offer no improvement over existing drugs: 97%
4.Amount of prescription drug costs in Canada covered by the federal government: 2.9%
5.Number of drug prescriptions filled in Canadian pharmacies in 2005: 396 million
6.Number of prescriptions per capita in Canada in 2005: 12
7.Canadian per capita prescription drug expenditure in 2005: $564
8.Pfizer’s profit on $48 billion worth of business in 2002: $9.1 billion
9.Amount spent by Merck in 2000 on direct to consumer advertising for Vioxx (U.S): $160 million
10.Number of extra patients (U.S.) that experienced heart attacks from Vioxx use: 88,000 to 139,000
11.Adverse drug reactions as ranked among the leading cause of death in Canada: between 4th and 7th
12.Number of sales representatives for pharmaceutical companies in the U.S. alone in 2005: 100,000
13.Estimated amount spent by the pharmaceutical industry in Canada on promotion in 2004: $2.1 billion
14.Estimated increase in total antidepressant drug costs (mostly SSRIs) from 1993 to 2000: 347%
15.Scientists at the U.S. FDA who lack confidence in their agency’s ability to monitor drug safety: 2 in 3
16.Percentage of 2003 budget for Health Canada’s drug approval agency that comes from the drug industry: 56%
17.Percentage of the Canadian population that have 100 % coverage for drug expenses: under 10
18.Number of Canadians who are not insured for prescription drugs: 1 million
19.Number of Canadians that have some type of protective cap on out-of-pocket drug expenses: 1/3
20.Annual increase in employer health benefit premiums: 15%
21.Number of Canadians who have inadequate drug insurance: 4.3 million
22.Annual administrative costs of the private drug insurance system in Canada: $670 to $800 million
23.Canada’s prescription drug costs as a percentage of OECD average: 30% higher
24.Australian Pharmacare savings on new patented drugs compared to Canada:
9%

Sources: Canadian Institute for Health Information (1, 2, 4); PMPRB (3, 13); IMS Canada (5, 6, 7); Fortune 2003 (8, 9); Lancet, (9458) 2005 (10) ; CMAJ, 161-3, 1999 (11); Forbes, May 8, 2005 (12); Currie, J., Women & Health Protection, 2005 (14); Harper’s Index, March 2005; (15); Health Canada, 2003 (16); Applied Management & Fraser Group Tristat, 2000 (17, 18, 19); Hutty, S. 2002, Third Party Issues (20); Applied Management et al (21); Palmer D’Angelo, 1997(22); Lexchin, J., CCPA, 2001 (23); Productivity Commission, Australia, 2001 (24).
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