What are Canadian
prescriptions?
Canadian prescriptions are medications which have been approved
by HealthCanada (Canada's equivalent regulatory body to the FDA)
for use by the more than 32 million Canadian citizens. All Canadian
prescription medications have a DIN or Drug Identification Number
which uniquely identifies a medication's strength and manufacturer.
Prescription packaging and labels are in both French and English,
the two official languages of Canada.
Why is medicine less expensive
in Canada?
Prescription drug prices in Canada are set by the PMPRB (Patented
Medicine Prices Review Board) which was founded in 1987. Its mandate
is to ensure that prices charged by manufacturers of patented
medicines in Canada are not excessive, report annually to the
Canadian Parliament on price trends of all medicines in Canada
and to report on research & development expenditures versus
sales by patentees.
The PMPRB does the following:
- Existing patented drugs prices cannot increase more than the
Consumer Price Index (CPI)
- Protects consumers by ensuring that prices charged by manufacturers
are not excessive
- Only regulates patented-medications (A patent expires 20 years
after filing in Canada)
- Most new patented drug prices are limited so that the cost
of therapy is in the range of the cost of therapy for existing
drugs
- Breakthrough drug prices are limited to the median of the
prices for the same drugs charged in other industrialized countries
(France, Germany, Italy, Sweden, Switzerland, U.K. and the U.S.)
- In addition, the Canadian prices of patented medicines can
never be the highest in the world
For these reasons patented Canadian prescriptions are less expensive
in Canada than the United States. The PMPRB does not regulate
the prices of generic drugs. That is why generic medications are
less expensive in the United States than Canada.
Prescription Point offers you the ability to order your prescriptions
from Canada and/or the United States. We always find you the best
prices.
Begin your prescription drug search
Who regulates Canadian prescription
medication?
When a product is offered for sale in Canada to treat or prevent
diseases or symptoms, it is regulated as a drug under the Food
and Drugs Act. Health Canada's Therapeutic Products Directorate
(TPD) is responsible for evaluating and monitoring the safety,
effectiveness and quality of pharmaceutical drugs and other therapeutic
products available to Canadians.
Health Canada's Therapeutic Products Directorate is the Canadian
federal authority that regulates pharmaceutical drugs and medical
devices for human use. Prior to being given market authorization,
a manufacturer must present substantive scientific evidence of
a product's safety, efficacy and quality as required by the Canadian
Food and Drugs Act and Regulations.
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