Canada is geographically one of the world’s largest countries, but only has a population of 33.5 million. The economy is highly developed, and GDP per capita, at US$39,710 in 2009, is on a par with the US or EU.

In 2009, the pharmaceutical market is ranked 7th in the world at US$32.7 billion and Canada spends around double the amount on pharmaceuticals compared to the USA. In 2007, Canadians spent C$2.2 billion (US$2.0 billion) on psychotherapeutic drugs, and as such, are one of the highest consumers in the world of this category of drugs.

In December 2008, opposition parties tried to bring a vote of no confidence in the minority Conservative government but this was stopped by Stephen Harper suspending Parliament for a month until the 26th January 2009, when Parliament resumed with the presentation of the federal budget. He seems to be steering the party towards tackling economic matters.

In contrast to the USA, Canada’s healthcare system is very much based on public funding and provision, as in the UK. Expenditure is generally high, at around 11.0% of GDP in 2009, although inefficiencies remain. Health provision is the responsibility of provincial governments, which often have widely differing targets and priorities.

Patented drug prices in Canada are controlled by the government, and are tend to be lower than in the USA. This continues to irk the branded industry, and has led to a burgeoning parallel trade between the two countries. The US has taken no clear position on the issue, but in 2005 the Canadian government indicated that it would legislate to severely restrict parallel trade. As yet, this has not happened, however.

In 2004, Canada’s provinces agreed a ten year healthcare plan with the central government. This includes a national pharmaceutical plan which aims to ensure that ‘no Canadians should suffer undue financial hardship in accessing needed drug therapies’, and that ‘affordable access to drugs is fundamental to equitable health outcomes’.

In 2009, the USA has added Canada to its priority watch list over concerns over IPR protection and enforcement. Canada’s patent laws have been progressively tightened since the 1980s. The current focus for debate is on the process of ‘evergreening’, which generic companies have strongly lobbied against. Government amendments in 2006 attempted to offer a balanced reform but were poorly received by the local generic industry.

Canada’s domestic drug industry is dominated by a handful of multinationals and local generic producers. The largest local company is Apotex, one of the world’s foremost generic producers. In November 2008, Apotex lost the latest legal battle over the patent dispute about Plavix (clopidogrel) in the Canadian High Court against Sanofi-Aventis and Bristol-Myers Squibb.

Related Reports:
Snapshots Hungary Pharmaceuticals 2009
Snapshots Poland Pharmaceuticals 2009
Snapshots South Africa Pharmaceuticals 2009
Snapshots Spain Pharmaceuticals 2009
Snapshots Venezuela Pharmaceuticals 2009
Australia Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Report Q1 2010
Thailand Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Report Q1 2010
Poland Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Report Q1 2010
Argentina Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Report Q1 2010
Kenya Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Report Q1 2010