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Corporate pressure led Shoppers Drug Mart staff to bill for unnecessary medication reviews, pharmacists say

Shoppers Drug Mart billing Ontario for unnecessary checks, former employees say

6 months ago

Duration 3:11

In a CBC News investigation, former Shoppers Drug Mart employees say the company pressured pharmacists to conduct unnecessary MedsCheck calls checks designed to help patients manage their medications that cost the Ontario government money.

Sitting at her home in Ottawa earlier this month, Mary Fernando got an out-of-the-blue call from her pharmacy at Shoppers Drug Mart.

An employee on the other end of the line asked if she was still using two inhalers to control her asthma, and if she was happy with the medication. She said yes, then quickly ended the call all within five minutes.

"It was just a bizarre conversation," she said.

Fernando later realized Shoppers Drug Mart had billed for the conversation as a virtual medication review under Ontario's MedsCheck program, which reimburses pharmacies in Ontario for meeting with patients to go over their prescriptions.

"I could not imagine a milder patient than me, right? And a more useless MedsCheck," Fernando said in an interview.

"You think that money could be used should be used more wisely."

CBC News spoke with former Shoppers Drug Mart pharmacy employees who believe the company is taking advantage of the MedsCheck service by pushing staff to bill for consultations patients don't necessarily need. The company can then bill the province up to $75 per call.

Eight former Shoppers Drug Mart employees said intense pressure from management pushed staff to cold-call customers regularly. In an internal letter obtained by CBC News that was emailed to company leadership last July, a group of pharmacy owners said the "borderline abusive" pressure to do more MedsCheck calls was affecting their ability to provide the best patient care.

In an interview on Tuesday, Shoppers Drug Mart president Jeff Leger said the company does not "pressure pharmacists to bill for MedsChecks" in order to turn a profit.

"We obviously monitor this very closely, take these allegations very seriously, but really believe that MedsChecks and med reviews are actually having a positive impact on Canadians," Leger said.Read more

Some phone plans are pricier than before the Rogers-Shaw deal, says Canada's competition watchdog

Certain cellphone plans in Western Canada are not as cheap as they were prior to the Rogers-Shaw merger, Canada's competition watchdog says.

Jeanne Pratt, the Competition Bureau's senior deputy commissioner of mergers and monopolistic practices, says the agency hasn't seen evidence showing Rogers Communications Inc. is offering comparable pricing for bundled wireless plans offered by Shaw Mobile in Alberta and British Columbia before the $26-billion takeover closed last April.

Pratt was testifying at the House of Commons industry committee on Monday along with representatives from the CRTC, as MPs study the accessibility and affordability of wireless and broadband services in Canada.

MPs on the committee sounded the alarm in January, when Rogers confirmed prices were going up by an average of $5 for wireless customers not on contract, and some Bell Canada customers were also told their wireless bills were set to increase.

The committee has invited the chief executives of Rogers, Bell parent BCE Inc. and Telus Corp. to testify at an upcoming meeting.

NDP MP Brian Masse tabled a motion on Monday to summon the three CEOs to appear if the committee's invitation is not accepted.Read more

A fluctuating Frosty? Wendy's will test dynamic pricing at some U.S. locations in 2025

Craving a Frosty? Better get it on a slow day if you're going to a Wendy's that'll be testing dynamic pricing in the U.S., that is. The company recently announced in an earnings call that it would launch the experiment at some locations as part of its new digital menus to be launched next year.

The idea is that the cost of menu items, such as the fast-food giant's signature frozen dessert, will fluctuate throughout the day and might even cost more when demand is high.

After media reports noting the change were published on Tuesday, Wendy's responded, saying it won't increase prices during the busiest times at its restaurants and that it isn't implementing "surge pricing," which the spokesperson said was distinct from dynamic pricing.

A summary of the earnings call posted on the Wendy's website refers to "dynamic pricing" and "upsell capabilities" in a slide touting its new digital menu boards.

The spokesperson added that the change is expected to drive traffic during slower parts of the day. When asked if the changes will take effect in Canada, the spokesperson said the experiment will be confined to some U.S. locations for now.Read more

Ottawa has unveiled a national pharmacare plan that would cover diabetes treatments and contraception

Health Minister Mark Holland released the long-awaited details of the federal government's pharmacare plan on Thursday, with a commitment to cover some diabetes treatments and contraception.

If the bill, C-64, passes Parliament, Holland will begin negotiating with the provinces and territories on a funding commitment that would cover the cost of providing these medications to people for free.

The federal government says it will also establish a fund to support Canadian diabetics who need access to syringes and glucose test strips to manage their condition but struggle to afford them.

The government says one in four Canadians with diabetes about 3.7 million people have the condition have reported they're not following their treatment plans due to the cost.

The "first-dollar" coverage for these drugs an insurance industry term that means the government foots the bill entirely will help those diabetics in particular.

The pharmacare plan also will give the nine million Canadians of reproductive age better access to contraception to ensure "reproductive autonomy, reducing the risk of unintended pregnancies and improving their ability to plan for the future," the government said in its media release.

The federal government says that beyond diabetes treatments and contraception, it intends eventually to implement more coverage for other medications.Read more

What else is going on?

The Canadian economy not in recession, but 2023 was one of its weakest recent years
StatsCan says aside from first year of pandemic, growth in 2023 rose at slowest pace since 2016.

As Lynx heads to the discount airline graveyard, what options do travellers have?
CBC's Jenna Benchetrit breaks down why it's so difficult for ultra low-cost carriers to compete.

Thieves were able to steal $1,000 in Optimum points from a Vancouver woman
Here's how to protect yourself.

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