Financing of prescription drugs with and without universal pharmacare in 2020*
| Total expenditure | Without pharmacare, $ billions | With pharmacare, $ billions | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drugs on the national formulary | |||
| Paid through taxes | 13.5 | 23.2 | 9.7 |
| Paid directly and through private insurance premiums | 14.3 | 0.5 | −13.9 |
| Subtotal: drugs on national formulary | 27.9 | 23.7 | −4.2 |
| Drugs not on the national formulary | |||
| Paid through taxes | 1.4 | 1.4 | 0.0 |
| Paid directly and through private insurance premiums | 3.2 | 3.2 | 0.0 |
| Subtotal: drugs not on national formulary | 4.6 | 4.6 | 0.0 |
| Grand total | 32.5 | 28.3 | −4.2 |
↵* Authors’ calculations based on estimates of the Parliamentary Budget Officer.12