Why Are Canadian Pharmacies Cheaper?

why are canadian pharmacies cheaper

The reason you pay less for drugs from Canada is because of price controls on Rx medication put in place by the Federal Government through Health Canada, which is Canada’s equivalent of the FDA in America. Health Canada makes it so there is a ‘cap’ to the prices that pharma manufacturers are able to set for their drugs. In Canada there is the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board and if they believe the set price for any drug is too high then they prevent it from being added to the drug formulary. The manufacturer must lower their set price to get it onto the market, and this is the biggest part of your answer to why are Canadian pharmacies cheaper.

Generic medication will provide a more affordable alternative for people, but pharma manufacturers will be able to keep their patent on new Rx medications for 5 years. After that time a generic equivalent may become available, and generics do help Americans save money on prescription medication. But during those first 5 years they’ll have no choice but to pay the price for branded medication and in many cases it’s painfully high. For anyone who is newly diagnosed with a serious health condition it can be very upsetting to learn how much their medication costs and that’s there is no generic available yet.

All of this again leads to the question why are Canadian pharmacies cheaper, and we’ve only provided one part of the answer to that here so far. There’s more to the equation, and all of it leading to the answer that ordering medication online from Canada is the way to go for anyone who’s struggling to afford expensive Rx drugs like Harvoni for hepatitis C.

Added Factors

3 other primary factors are also contributing to why are Canadian pharmacies cheaper. Legal protection adds to Rx drug costs in America and these legalities are in place to benefit the interest of big pharma manufacturers. That’s not surprising considering the USA where civil litigation is darn near a national pastime and people / companies try to sue each other at the drop of the hat. Preventative expenditure in the regard is something the pharma manufacturers build into the prices, and again there are no price caps to prevent that from happening.

You might be surprised to learn that the different levels for standard of living play in the 2 countries play a role too. It is also a contributor to why are Canadian pharmacies cheaper, but it’s not as easy to see why that is the case. The basics of it is that Americans have higher incomes and are therefore less sensitive to higher drug prices, but there are lot of people who will tell you otherwise. Last but not least is how much more direct-to-consumer medication advertising makes drug cost more in America than in Canada. Higher drugs costs are looked to in order to defray the cost of billions in D2C advertising.

IMPORTANT NOTE: The above information is intended to increase awareness of health information and does not suggest treatment or diagnosis. This information is not a substitute for individual medical attention and should not be construed to indicate that use of the drug is safe, appropriate, or effective for you. See your health care professional for medical advice and treatment.

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