Table 3.
Province | Government Funding for Pharmacist Prescribing*† | Administration of Drugs or Vaccines by Injection | Funding for Vaccines† |
---|---|---|---|
British Columbia | Funding for renewing a prescription and adapting a dose and for therapeutic substitution; clinical service fee is paid whether or not drug or patient is covered by provincial PharmaCare | Cannot administer drugs; can administer vaccines | Funding provided for administration of any vaccine (patient must be ≥ 5 years) |
Alberta | Funding for emergency prescribing, renewing and adapting a prescription, and initial-access prescribing | Can administer drugs and vaccines | Funding provided for administration of any IM or SC vaccine having coverage in place (patient must be ≥ 5 years for most vaccines or ≥ 9 years for seasonal influenza vaccine) |
Saskatchewan | Funding for emergency prescribing and renewing and adapting a prescription; no funding in place for prescriptive services provided by Level 2 pharmacists | Cannot administer drugs; can administer vaccines | Funding provided for administration of vaccines (patient must be ≥ 9 years) |
Manitoba | No funding | Can administer drugs and vaccines | Funding provided for administration of any vaccine (patient must be ≥ 7 years) |
Ontario | No funding | Cannot administer drugs; can administer vaccines | Funding provided for influenza vaccine only (patient must be ≥ 5 years) |
Quebec | Funding for prescribing: to extend prescriptions, for conditions not requiring a diagnostic test, for adjusting a prescription, and for minor ailments | Cannot administer drugs or vaccines by injection, but can perform injections for demonstration purposes only | |
Prince Edward Island | No funding | Can administer drugs and vaccines | Funding provided for influenza vaccine for select patient populations (e.g., > 65 years, pregnant, Aboriginal) or cost is paid by patient |
Newfoundland and Labrador | No funding | Can administer drugs and vaccines | Funding provided for influenza vaccine administered to beneficiaries of provincial drug plan |
Nova Scotia | Funding for adapting a prescription | Can administer drugs and vaccines | Funding provided for influenza vaccine administration (patient must be ≥ 5 years) |
New Brunswick | No funding | Provincial legislation allows administration of drugs by injection, but framework for implementation not yet established; can administer vaccines | Funding provided for administration of influenza vaccine to patients ≥ 5 years |
APA = additional prescribing authorization, IM = intramuscular, SC = subcutaneous.
Many provinces have funding in place for medication review and management processes. This study specifically investigated funding for provision of the prescriptive services outlined in the case-based scenarios.
Funding agency is the provincial government, unless otherwise specified.