About the Study This report compares pharmaceutical reimbursement in Canada with other developed nations. The analysis goes deeper than anything published before on public reimbursement of pharmaceuticals in Canada. The objective of the report is to measure what is happening in Canada, as well as how Canada ranks internationally. Without measuring what has been accomplished, it is difficult to make progress. The study was limited to OECD nations. These are developed nations that have the ability to pay for health services, including drugs. In essence, this report measures their willingness to pay for new, innovative pharmaceuticals. Canada ranks near the top in economic performance and the proportion of resources Canadians dedicate to health spending. Canada ranks about average when it comes to the percentage of health resources expended on pharmaceuticals. However, Canada ranks below the average on the government portion of health spending and is tied for last with the US when it comes to paying for pharmaceuticals through public drugs programs. Most of the public drug programs in Canada are administered by the provinces and most provinces run several different programs to meet the needs of many different audiences. This is common in other countries as well. Most jurisdictions also require plan members to contribute financially when participating in the drug plan. Canada does have a very strong private drug plan sector. However, about one in every ten Canadians has no drug coverage whatsoever. Only the US fares worse in this measurement.