The Liberals and New Democrats have reached an agreement on a “historic” pharmacare bill, NDP leader Jagmeet Singh says.
This announcement comes after Singh had put Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on notice earlier this month to come up with a plan or face repercussions including losing the NDP’s support in the supply and confidence agreement propping up the Liberal minority government.
Singh told CBC journalist Rosemary Barton in a yet-to-air interview that the agreement would be historic, describing it as a significant milestone for Canadians.
“We’ve secured something really important, I would say really historic for Canadians. We’re really excited about this,” said Singh.
The draft legislation, crafted through extensive discussions, outlines the framework for a national pharmacare program, one of Singh’s key demands from Ottawa.
Additionally, it promises immediate coverage for essential medications such as contraceptives and diabetes treatments. According to Singh, the system “clearly points to a single payer” model.
“We’ve gotten a lot. And more important, people are going to get some real help,” said Singh.
Earlier this month, Singh had issued a stern warning to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, indicating that the failure to present adequate pharmacare legislation by the March 1 deadline would have severe repercussions on the confidence-and-supply arrangement.
Singh’s firm stance underscored the NDP’s unwavering dedication to delivering tangible results on healthcare reform.
“I made it clear… this is something we’re very serious about. We’re not going to extend this any further. We’re very serious that pharmacare has to be delivered,” Singh reiterated during a press conference.
With the March 1 deadline looming, the pressure was on the Liberal government to fulfill its promise on pharmacare. Failure to meet this deadline would jeopardize the stability of the confidence-and-supply agreement, potentially leading to significant consequences for the government.
