Insurance company Manulife has announced big changes in how it covers certain prescription drugs, with roughly 260 medications now only available for coverage if dispensed at a Loblaw-owned pharmacy.
The new arrangement is known as a preferred pharmacy network arrangement: insurers get a better price on medication in exchange for giving pharmacies exclusive rights to dispense it. This agreement includes medication used to treat complex, chronic or life-threatening conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s, multiple sclerosis, hypertension, cancer and hepatitis C.
For independent pharmacists like Mohammad Masood, it signals another shift away from personalized patient care
“For every medication, they can come here,” he said. “But for their oncology or arthritis medication, they have to go to a completely different pharmacy and pharmacist. They may be well trained, but they don’t have the holistic picture that we have.”
Masood says many of the 260 medication included in this agreement were already restricted in terms of where they could be filled under coverage, but he says independent pharmacies should have been brought into this process.
“If they wanted to improve competition and come down on price they could have come to independent pharmacists and said this is the price we are willing to pay for a drug. ‘If you want to dispense it, dispense it,'” he suggests. “‘If you want to leave it. Leave it.'”
Manulife says the deal will provide “more options” for patients with prescriptions available for pick up in store or by delivery
“At this time, to evolve our program, it’s appropriate to select a single service provider to move the program forward for the benefit of our customers and their employees,” said Doug Bryce, Manulife vice-president of product and platforms.
Loblaw, which owns Shoppers Drug Mart, insists the patient experience “will remain unchanged, if not better.”
“They can pick up their prescriptions from one of more than 1,800 pharmacies across our network, or have them shipped directly to their home,” said spokeswoman Catherine Thomas.
But others, aren’t as sure.
“The consolidation of the pharmacy business is less choice for Canadians,” says Stephen Morgan, a professor of health policy at the University of British Columbia. “It will start looking a lot like our telecom industry where we have less choice and pay high prices. You don’t want to see that in your pharmaceutical sector.”
In Quebec, rules prevent preferred pharmacy networks so coverage in that province will remain unchanged. But for those in small and rural communities in other parts of the country, it might mean driving longer distances to a Loblaw-owned pharmacy.
“It’s not ideal from a patient care perspective,” said Justin Bates, CEO of the Ontario Pharmacists Association. “It introduces an uneven playing field because largely independent pharmacies aren’t able to participate.”
At Mohammad Masood’s Scarborough, Ont. pharmacy most patients are long time customers. Masood says he knows their history and understands their medical needs. He thinks deals like the partnership between Manulife and Loblaw doesn’t take that into account.
“There is a discontinuity,” he says. “We have a circle of care here in which the patient is taken care of.”
TORONTO – Canada Goose Holdings Inc. says it has signed a deal that will result in the creation of its first eyewear collection.
The deal announced on Thursday by the Toronto-based luxury apparel company comes in the form of an exclusive, long-term global licensing agreement with Marchon Eyewear Inc.
The terms and value of the agreement were not disclosed, but Marchon produces eyewear for brands including Lacoste, Nike, Calvin Klein, Ferragamo, Longchamp and Zeiss.
Marchon plans to roll out both sunglasses and optical wear under the Canada Goose name next spring, starting in North America.
Canada Goose says the eyewear will be sold through optical retailers, department stores, Canada Goose shops and its website.
Canada Goose CEO Dani Reiss told The Canadian Press in August that he envisioned his company eventually expanding into eyewear and luggage.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Almost seven years since news broke of an alleged conspiracy to fix the price of packaged bread across Canada, the saga isn’t over: the Competition Bureau continues to investigate the companies that may have been involved, and two class-action lawsuits continue to work their way through the courts.
Here’s a timeline of key events in the bread price-fixing case.
Oct. 31, 2017: The Competition Bureau says it’s investigating allegations of bread price-fixing and that it was granted search warrants in the case. Several grocers confirm they are co-operating in the probe.
Dec. 19, 2017: Loblaw and George Weston say they participated in an “industry-wide price-fixing arrangement” to raise the price of packaged bread. The companies say they have been co-operating in the Competition Bureau’s investigation since March 2015, when they self-reported to the bureau upon discovering anti-competitive behaviour, and are receiving immunity from prosecution. They announce they are offering $25 gift cards to customers amid the ongoing investigation into alleged bread price-fixing.
Jan. 31, 2018: In court documents, the Competition Bureau says at least $1.50 was added to the price of a loaf of bread between about 2001 and 2016.
Dec. 20, 2019: A class-action lawsuit in a Quebec court against multiple grocers and food companies is certified against a number of companies allegedly involved in bread price-fixing, including Loblaw, George Weston, Metro, Sobeys, Walmart Canada, Canada Bread and Giant Tiger (which have all denied involvement, except for Loblaw and George Weston, which later settled with the plaintiffs).
Dec. 31, 2021: A class-action lawsuit in an Ontario court covering all Canadian residents except those in Quebec who bought packaged bread from a company named in the suit is certified against roughly the same group of companies.
June 21, 2023: Bakery giant Canada Bread Co. is fined $50 million after pleading guilty to four counts of price-fixing under the Competition Act as part of the Competition Bureau’s ongoing investigation.
Oct. 25 2023: Canada Bread files a statement of defence in the Ontario class action denying participating in the alleged conspiracy and saying any anti-competitive behaviour it participated in was at the direction and to the benefit of its then-majority owner Maple Leaf Foods, which is not a defendant in the case (neither is its current owner Grupo Bimbo). Maple Leaf calls Canada Bread’s accusations “baseless.”
Dec. 20, 2023: Metro files new documents in the Ontario class action accusing Loblaw and its parent company George Weston of conspiring to implicate it in the alleged scheme, denying involvement. Sobeys has made a similar claim. The two companies deny the allegations.
July 25, 2024: Loblaw and George Weston say they agreed to pay a combined $500 million to settle both the Ontario and Quebec class-action lawsuits. Loblaw’s share of the settlement includes a $96-million credit for the gift cards it gave out years earlier.
Sept. 12, 2024: Canada Bread files new documents in Ontario court as part of the class action, claiming Maple Leaf used it as a “shield” to avoid liability in the alleged scheme. Maple Leaf was a majority shareholder of Canada Bread until 2014, and the company claims it’s liable for any price-fixing activity. Maple Leaf refutes the claims.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
Companies in this story: (TSX:L, TSX:MFI, TSX:MRU, TSX:EMP.A, TSX:WN)
TORONTO – TD Bank Group, which is mired in a money laundering scandal in the U.S., says chief executive Bharat Masrani will retire next year.
Masrani, who will retire officially on April 10, 2025, says the bank’s, “anti-money laundering challenges,” took place on his watch and he takes full responsibility.
The bank named Raymond Chun, TD’s group head, Canadian personal banking, as his successor.
As part of a transition plan, Chun will become chief operating officer on Nov. 1 before taking over the top job when Masrani steps down at the bank’s annual meeting next year.
TD also announced that Riaz Ahmed, group head, wholesale banking and president and CEO of TD Securities, will retire at the end of January 2025.
TD has taken billions in charges related to ongoing U.S. investigations into the failure of its anti-money laundering program.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2024.
