College of Pharmacists of British Columbia responds to allegations pharmacies are offering kickbacks

The Globe and Mail and CBC News have alleged that some pharmacies in B.C. are giving vulnerable patients cash in return for using their stores. Those investigations included calls for greater oversight from the College of Pharmacists of British Columbia, which responded with a statement about its commitment to ending “inappropriate prescription incentives.”A Globe and Mail investigation interviewed 28 patients, doctors, and pharmacists who alleged that dozens of pharmacies were offering kickback schemes. Five sources who received payments told the paper that $50 a week was common, and a reporter even witnessed one such transaction. CBC News also investigated and spoke to more than a dozen sources who alleged pharmacies were paying customers in B.C.’s PharmaCare program $100 to $200 a month for filling prescriptions with them. Both investigations raised questions about how the college was handling complaints on this issue.Read: Regulatory change means NB pharmacies can't provide consumer incentives for prescriptions and pharma servicesThe College of Pharmacists of British Columbia released a statement after the pieces ran saying it “shared the feeling of outrage [the public and the medical community] have toward those responsible” for this. “We appreciate those who have come forward to share their concerns and stories and wish to assure the community that although we cannot share specifics for obvious reasons, we are doing everything we can to ensure that all pharmacists conduct themselves according to the College’s bylaws and Code of Ethics,” Suzanne Solven, the college registrar and CEO, said in the statement. That followed the British Columbia Pharmacy Association (BCPhA) calling on the province and the regulatory body to act. “We were deeply troubled to read about the reports of pharmacies that are alleged to be providing cash incentives to patients, which is illegal,” Angie Gaddy, executive director of communications of the BCPhA, said in an email. “We find these alleged actions unacceptable, and the B.C. Pharmacy Association supports regulators taking action against these practices.” Read: Banned for 5 years: Pharmacist left methadone on patient’s doorstep and falsified dose administration logsThe Globe spoke with complainants who said they reported pharmacies to the College of Pharmacists of B.C. and the Ministry of Health, none of which appear to have resulted in penalties to the pharmacist or pharmacy. Lisa Howard, a family physician in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, told the paper she and colleagues had also reported pharmacies to the college several times. “The College of Pharmacists doesn’t care,” she said. “They said, ‘We can’t accept your complaint unless it comes from the patient who’s directly benefiting from it.’ So the patient has to complain that they’re getting paid, essentially, which doesn’t make sense to me.”The college told CBC News it had a “long-standing concern about the negative effects of incentive programs.” It banned incentive programs in 2013 and conducted undercover investigations into this in 2015. But the last time a pharmacy lost its billing privileges over incentives was in March 2016. Read: The high risk of methadone: What you ought to know about OATDavid Tsu, a family doctor who works in Vancouver and focuses on inner-city medicine, Aboriginal Health, and HIV, said he first spoke to reporters 20 years ago about kickbacks from pharmacies and it still hasn't stopped. “We've created a strong financial incentive for this format to happen, and there isn't significant enough oversight to prevent this practice, clearly,” he said.He now feels cynical, guessing that in another five or 10 years, he’ll just be talking to another reporter about the same issue. The Globe’s reporting also included allegations that pharmacies would tell patients which medications to ask for, fail to dispense or deliver medications, say medications were taken even when patients were away, and leave drugs at doorsteps or with neighbours. Sources also alleged pharmacists were aggressively trying to recruit people in supportive housing. Susan Burgess, a semi-retired outreach physician, told CBC News that she’d had patients who were good candidates for once-a-month injectable Suboxone stay on daily methadone to get the cash payments. Others, she said, have told her pharmacies that are paying them have threatened to withhold their medications if they transfer away. “These are behaviours that totally no one should be exposed to—a profession that sounds more like a nasty drug dealer might do to you," she says. Read: New outreach centre for youth aims to save lives in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside

College of Pharmacists of British Columbia responds to allegations pharmacies are offering kickbacks

Register for free access or login.

Related Topics