Pharmacare advisory committee report set to be made public

Prescription drugs are seen on shelves at a pharmacy in Montreal on March 11, 2021. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz

OTTAWA — The federal government is set to release a report today by the advisory committee tasked with determining how to set up a national pharmacare program.

The committee was set up last fall, after the Pharmacare Act became law, and was given a year to report back to the health minister.

The pharmacare law was something the NDP pushed for as part of its supply and confidence deal with the minority Liberal government under Justin Trudeau.

It called for an expert committee to recommend options for operating and financing a national, universal, single-payer pharmacare program.

A report by the parliamentary budget officer in 2023 estimated such a program would cost $11.2 billion more than the government currently spends on medications and other costs.

The current minority Liberal government under Prime Minister Mark Carney set aside no new funding for pharmacare in its recent budget.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 21, 2025.

Sarah Ritchie, The Canadian Press