Province’s decision whether to cover $350 abortion pill months away

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This article was published 20/04/2017 (3292 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

THE Canadian Drug Expert Committee has recommended abortion pill Mifegymiso be covered by public drug plans, but a decision about whether the Manitoba government will fund it is months away.

The committee released its decision this week, citing two reasons: the drug has a success rate of between 95 and 97 per cent, and adverse reactions experienced by patients are in line with those one would expect from expelling a fetus (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea).

The next step, a provincial government spokesperson said Thursday, is to figure out pricing with Mifegymiso’s manufacturer, Celopharma Inc. The drug is currently offered at a dozen or so locations across Canada, including Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg. It costs $350 per prescription.

Through the pan-Canadian Pharmaceutical Alliance, a decision about how much of that $350 should be reimbursed will be made over the coming months. In the meantime, the provincial government is reviewing the committee’s full recommendation and “looking at options for how this drug will be accessed in Manitoba.”

The spokesperson said a final decision will not be made until the pricing negotiation is complete.

The drug arrived in Winnipeg in mid-March, and the province’s first medical abortion using Mifegymiso was performed not long after.