Last updated: November 7, 2023
July 20, 2023 – Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Canada and the pan-Canadian Pharmaceutical Alliance (pCPA) have successfully concluded negotiations for RADICAVA Oral Suspension (edaravone), also known as oral edaravone, and entered into a Letter of Intent (LOI) for the terms and conditions under which the therapy would qualify for reimbursement through federal, provincial, and territorial public drug plans in Canada.
It is now up to individual provinces and territories to make a reimbursement decision for the therapy. If negotiations are successful, provincial and territorial drug plans will provide reimbursement for oral edaravone.
While this is a positive step forward in access to therapies, time is of the essence for the ALS community. Canada’s drug access and reimbursement processes and timeframes do not reflect the urgency of people living with a terminal disease. Oral edaravone received approval from Health Canada in November 2022. In the 10 months it took for the pCPA negotiations to conclude, it’s estimated that hundreds of Canadians living with ALS will have died while waiting for potential access to the therapy and hundreds more will die if they must continue to wait months or years for the decision by each province and territory to cover the therapy under provincial drug programs.
ALS Canada will continue to actively support the provincial drug programs to make informed and expedited reimbursement decisions by bringing forward the perspective and experiences of people affected by ALS. We are hopeful that provincial decision-makers in the reimbursement process will work quickly to provide expedited and equitable access for all Canadians who may benefit. There is simply no time to wait for people affected by ALS.
Advocating for swift public reimbursement of oral edaravone will help lay the groundwork for access to future ALS therapies. It can take as little as 60 seconds to tell the Minister responsible for health in your province or territory that oral edaravone must be reimbursed without delay. Participate in the campaign here.
As of November 7, 2023, following provinces have made decisions regarding the public reimbursement of RADICAVA Oral Suspension (edaravone):
- Ontario: Under the Ontario Drug Benefit Formulary (Exceptional Access Program)
- Alberta: Under the Alberta Drug Benefit List
- Quebec: Under the Régie de l’assurance maladie du Québec (RAMQ) formulary (special authorization)
- British Columbia: Under the British Columbia PharmaCare (special authority)
- New Brunswick: Under the New Brunswick Drug Plan (NBDP) formulary (special authorization)
- Nova Scotia: Under the Nova Scotia Formulary (exceptional status)
- Saskatchewan: Under the Saskatchewan Drug Plan Formulary (Exception Drug Status)
- Newfoundland and Labrador: Under the Newfoundland and Labrador Prescription Drug Program (NLPDP) (special authorization)
- Prince Edward Island: Under the Prince Edward Island (PEI) Pharmacare Formulary (special authorization)
We will continue to post updates as they become available. You can read more in Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Canada’s press release and learn more about how drugs become approved and accessible in Canada by visiting our blog post on this topic.