IINTRODUCTION
Drug patent policy always has been a subject of controversy. In his foreword to the famous Commission of Inquiry that bears his name, H. C. Eastman wrote:
I was impressed in the course of the Inquiry with the feelings of conviction and the sense of urgency of those communicating with the Commission and with the basic conflict in the advice I received....At least this has not changed. The Committee had the privilege to hear from many Canadians during these hearings in person, by videoconference or mail. We are grateful for the passion and concern that these witnesses showed. As the discussion turned, as it must at times, to arcane technicalities of NOC-Linkage Regulations or to the usefulness of the median price of drugs in a group of seven countries or to whether 20 years is the right length for a patent, it must be remembered that the energy that drives the public debate on drug patent policy comes from fears that the drugs needed to control illness or restore well-being will not be affordable in the future or that the research to invent new medicines to cure currently untreatable diseases will not be financed.
Just before the responsibility to undertake this mandatory review was assigned to this Committee, the National Forum on Health presented its report. It stated:
We are not proposing to increase overall spending ($6.5 billion in 1994) but rather attempting to control its future growth and to improve access. We are recommending full first-dollar coverage (i.e. no user fees) for prescription drugs for all Canadians. However, fiscal reality in the 1990s is such that this will not happen overnight. Over time, we propose to shift private spending on prescribed pharmaceuticals (estimated at $3.6 billion in 1994) to public funding. We believe that this will broaden access, improve equity, and make possible better overall cost control. We would therefore recommend that the federal government undertake with provincial and territorial governments, private payers, consumers and health professionals to explore various organizational models, their funding requirements and implementation strategies.The National Forum has opened up an important topic for discussion. The Committee hopes this Report will be a useful contribution to that debate.