Hi Brin, sorry I didn’t see this comment until now!

You bring up an excellent point. We have Fair Pharmacare in BC where you have to reach a certain amount before they start paying 70%, then another amount when they start paying 100%.

It’s great to know this exists, but you’re right that it’s a shame you have to know about it and apply for it! Thanks for sharing. This is important info that more people need to know about.

Thank you Brin for sharing this info, good to know! I agree, it’s a shame you have to know about this and apply for it but like you said at least it does exist!

I don’t know the details of how this works in other provinces, but in Ontario, households with prescription expenses above 4% of their income can get government coverage: each quarter you pay out of pocket for prescriptions until you hit that 4% figure, and then the program kicks in and pays for the rest of your prescriptions that quarter. And that’s for people between the ages of 25 and 65: I gather prescription coverage is even better outside that age range.

I do think it’s problematic that you have to explicitly apply for this (really they should just automatically sign everyone up for it as part of OHIP, with people with low-to-moderate prescription expenses simply never meeting their deductible), but at least it is there if you know to look for it. My household was on it for a while when we were making very little, and it was very helpful. We won’t hesitate to reapply if our expenses rise or our income falls, and I take comfort in knowing it’s there if anything happens to make us qualify again.