Mississauga, Ontario – March 13, 2019 – According to the Mississauga Board of Trade (MBOT) local businesses want an approach to national pharmacare that fills the gaps in the existing system by providing coverage for the 10% of Canadians who actually need the help: the uninsured and the underinsured.
Most Canadians are covered under an existing private or group plan and are satisfied with the coverage and affordability provided. The businesses in the City of Mississauga say it is not fiscally responsible to increase public sector debt to pay for a costly single-payer system when the existing system is working for most Canadians.
We are joining the hundreds of chambers of commerce and boards of trade from across the country that supported, with 97% of their votes, a policy resolution put forward at our national convention that urges the government to fill in the gaps in the current pharmacare system.
“A national pharmacare program should focus on leveraging the strengths of the existing system to raise the bar for Canadians and improve health outcomes. It should not reduce the coverage enjoyed by most Canadians under the existing system or result in coverage falling to the lowest common denominator,” said David Wojcik, President & CEO, MBOT.
“National pharmacare must give Canadians an advantage over what the system currently offers. A filling-in-the-gaps approach can identify ways to improve today’s patchwork of prescription drug coverages and implement pragmatic solutions to address the needs of employees and patients. National pharmacare should provide the most appropriate coverage to those who need it,” added Mr. Wojcik.
The business community is in strong agreement that national pharmacare will provide the greatest value to Canadians by focusing on those who do not have coverage and those who are underinsured. Instead of throwing out a system that is working for most Canadians, the federal government should use a national pharmacare program to ensure no Canadian lacks access to the medicines he or she needs.
MBOT is the voice of business in Ontario’s third largest city representing a large, diverse and active membership of vibrant and visionary businesses. We are a proud partner of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce.
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For more information/interview requests:
David Wojcik, President & CEO, MBOT
905-273-3527
