– Canada and B.C. signed two bilateral health-care agreements worth $426 million to support care aides and increase access to certain medications
– $232 million will be added to the Aging with Dignity agreement to better compensate health-care assistants
– The funds aim to improve compensation for the 13,000 full-time equivalent care aides currently working in B.C.
– $194 million will be allocated over three years to increase drug coverage for rare diseases, starting with two new drugs
– B.C. is in negotiations with pharmaceutical companies for pricing on 10 other rare disease drugs
– B.C. has committed to improving screening and diagnostics for rare diseases, as one in 12 people in Canada have a rare disease
– The province has been criticized for covering fewer rare disease medications compared to other provinces such as Quebec and Alberta.