A Canadian charity focused on gastrointestinal and liver diseases is calling on British Columbia’s major campaigning political parties to extend public coverage for a costly medication that treats a rare bowel condition – and that is already covered elsewhere in the country.
The Gastrointestinal Society is pressing whichever party forms government after the Oct. 19 election to publicly fund teduglutide, sold under the brand name Revestive, to treat short bowel syndrome, which impairs nutrient absorption owing to damage or absence of part of the small intestine. It is the only medication approved to treat SBS, and the charity notes that the drug is publicly covered in every province except for B.C. and Prince Edward Island.
The charity says it’s part of a larger problem of the B.C. government refusing to cover drugs more often than other provinces. Revestive is among 31 prescription medications that B.C. refused to cover between 2018 and 2023, the charity says, compared with Ontario, which declined coverage for just two of those drugs, and Alberta, which refused to cover three (B.C. began covering two of those in 2024). The list also includes treatment for schizophrenia and myelodysplastic syndrome.
“All I’m asking is for BC PharmaCare to treat patients in B.C. like they’re at the same level as the patients who live in every other part of Canada,” said Gail Attara, chief executive officer and president of the Gastrointestinal Society, in an interview.
SBS is rare: Ms. Attara said there are believed to be just 32 children with the condition in B.C. She noted that the recommended drugs are important because if some diseases aren’t treated early, they can become so severe that they cannot be fixed. The lack of coverage has prompted some patients to consider moving out of B.C., she said.
The Ministry of Health declined to comment during the continuing provincial election campaign, during which government departments restrict communications to essential health and public safety information. Spokesperson Amanda Lewis said in a statement that there is a “rigorous review process” that must be completed before a drug is covered under BC PharmaCare.
Adrian Dix, an NDP candidate who is also the Health Minister, said coverage for drugs in the province is achieved through an independent process: “We are committed to regularly reviewing B.C.’s pharmacare program, so we can continue to improve healthcare services for the people of B.C.,” he said.
The other leading party, B.C. Conservatives, did not respond to a request for comment.
Provinces each decide whether to cover medications under their prescription drug programs. The Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health makes recommendations through a process called the Common Drug Review.
The CADTH made a recommendation in 2015 that Revestive be covered for adults and in 2020 recommended it be covered for children between ages one and 17 – in both cases the recommendation came with certain conditions, including a substantial reduction in the price. The 2020 report notes that a year of the drug can cost more than $300,000. Both Alberta and Ontario list it as being covered by their public drug plans at the original price.
B.C.’s own review of Revestive concluded that it was not cost effective given the results of clinical studies.
Amanda Jacobs, a spokesperson for Takeda Canada Inc., the manufacturer of Revestive, said the price listed in the Common Drug Review report does not reflect the confidentially negotiated financial terms by the pan-Canadian Pharmaceutical Alliance (pCPA), which is a collective group of provinces and territories that are interested in providing reimbursement for the drug. She added that it is optional for a province to participate in this negotiation process.
She said the company hopes that any patients that may benefit from this innovative medicine has access and reimbursement no matter where they live in Canada.
Christine Langley of Nanaimo, B.C., has a three-year-old granddaughter who was born with only 10 per cent of her small intestine, resulting in SBS, which can lead to dehydration, malnutrition and delayed growth.
After nearly six months in the hospital and two surgeries, the girl began receiving IV nutrition. But by the age of two, she was struggling to surpass 19 pounds in weight, said Ms. Langley, who is also her caretaker.
Additionally, the child was delayed in walking, sitting up and rolling over – milestones typically achieved by three, six, or nine months, Ms. Langley said in an interview.
She was aware that Revestive was covered in most provinces in the country but not B.C. She then lost her job, meaning she didn’t have the access to the drug through her employer’s insurance.
Consequently, Ms. Langley was prepared to move to Ontario for treatment until their gastroenterologist connected them with the manufacturer’s compassionate use program.
“It has been a godsend,” she said. Within a year, the girl’s weight is now approaching 30 pounds, and “her development has been amazing; she acts like a normal kid now.”
Ms. Langley said it’s important that BC PharmaCare cover this treatment: “Why would these children who are born with this condition have to be at a disadvantage because they can’t nutritionally get what they need, because their body can’t physically do it?”