Gélinas: Ontario families deserve accountability as MedsCheck concerns grow

QUEEN’S PARK – Ontario NDP Health Critic France Gélinas (Nickel Belt) issued the following statement in response to new data showing Shoppers Drug Mart billed more than $81 million for MedsChecks in two years:

“The MedsCheck program was created to help people manage their medications safely, prevent harmful interactions, and ensure they receive the care they need. It is a service meant to protect patients… not to fuel corporate profit targets.

“I am deeply troubled and disappointed by the reports we continue to hear from pharmacists across Ontario about pressure to perform unnecessary reviews. When one chain bills more in two years than it did in the previous six combined, and when over a hundred investigations have been opened into corporate pressure, it’s clear that the program is being used to make profit not to help Ontarians.

“I also would like to acknowledge the many dedicated pharmacists who continue to speak up about these pressures and who remain committed to providing ethical, high-quality care. Their voices are critical in ensuring this program serves people, not corporate profit.

“Ontarians deserve a health-care system they can trust, one where every service is rooted in the best interests of patients. The Ministry must act now to strengthen and modernize the MedsCheck program with clear eligibility criteria, proper documentation, and safeguards that protect both patients and the pharmacists who care for them.”