Health Canada

Health Canada reviews drugs for safety, efficacy and quality before authorizing them for sale in Canada.

CADTH & INESSS

In Canada there are two health technology assessment organizations which review the clinical and cost-effectiveness of a drug product; the Canadian Agency for Drugs and Technologies in Health (CADTH) and in Quebec, l’Institut national d’excellence en santé et en services sociaux(INESSS). CADTH and INESSS provide a recommendation to public drug plans on whether or not a drug should be reimbursed for public funding.

pCPA

The pCPA negotiation process begins for the majority of new drugs, once a recommendation is published by CADTH and/or INESSS. pCPA uses the recommendations from CADTH and INESSS and other factors to determine whether or not it will enter into a negotiation for a drug. Following a successful negotiation, pCPA will issue a letter of intent which sets the terms of the agreement between pCPA and the drug manufacturer.

Public Drug Plans

Public Drug Plans make a final decision to fund a drug once a negotiation has been successfully completed and enter into a product listing agreement with the drug manufacturer.​

 pCPA Office

The pCPA office is hosted and staffed through Ontario and works closely with the jurisdictions providing support in negotiations, administration, communications, standardization, analytics, process design, and policy related to brand and generic products.​