Budgets/Spending/Market Size

There is much to debate in the question of whether or not biosimilars should be promoted as an alternative to biologic medicines.

Karyn Keith says she isn't asking for much. All she wants is the same support she'd receive if she was out of a job because of the pandemic, rather than unable to work because of her disabilities. The 44-year-old mother in Brampton, Ont., said she lives with constant pain and fatigue from multiple chronic conditions, including trigeminal neuralgia, a debilitating nerve disorder characterized by searing spasms through the face.

Pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca repeated its promise not to profit from a COVID-19 vaccine during the pandemic as it reported it was on track with late-stage trials for the treatment. Such promises were boosted by strong sales across its range of treatments during lockdown. Sales jumped by 14% to $12.6 billion in the first six months of 2020 and were helped by strong trading in new medicines, as well as cancer and respiratory medication.

An Alberta senator is urging Ottawa to fund a Canadian company so it can develop a domestic COVID-19 vaccine to lessen the risk Canadians will have wait in a line on a foreign-made pandemic cure. "I really do believe that we need to keep the pressure now on the government of Canada, whom I'm not criticizing. I get that this is an unusual time. And this may be in hand, or it may have fallen through the cracks. But we can't allow that to happen,'' Sen. Doug Black said in an interview Monday.

Federal health officials are extending the U.S. ban on cruise ships through the end September as coronavirus infections rise in most U.S. states, including Florida. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced Thursday that it was extending a no-sail order that had been scheduled to expire July 24.

The federal government is extending its program to subsidize wages in companies hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic until December, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday. The program is the heart of the government's promise to help Canadians get back to work, even if has to be at a slower pace, as the pandemic wanes.

Canada has finally come up with its most accurate picture of the distribution of net worth for Canadian families. The Parliamentary Budget Office released its report titled “Estimating The Top Tail Of The Family Wealth Distribution In Canada” in 2020. Here is a brief summary of what this report is all about.