BC’s Health Minister says the full picture of increased drug costs under the new trade agreement replacing NAFTA won’t be known for years.
Adrian Dix says with patent protection extending 10 years before generics can be made, prescriptions will cost more.
READ MORE: More online shopping but also pricier drugs — What the new NAFTA means for your wallet
Determining how many drugs are affected, or how much it will cost, will take time.
“These are the trade offs that you receive. And obviously anything that drives the cost prescription drugs is not something that provincial health systems like, but that’s something we’ll have to deal with.”
Dix is also making the point that the federal government has to be aware of the challenges health systems across the country will face and be part of the solution.
WATCH BELOW: British Columbians react to new NAFTA deal
A new trade agreement between the U.S., Mexico and Canada was agreed to on the weekend.
The governments of each country still need to approve the deal.