Provincial NDP Leader Jim Dinn is calling on Premier Andrew Furey to begin conversations with Ottawa to adopt the Federal Pharmacare Bill, which reached Royal Assent in the House of Commons last week.

The goal for this program is to be implemented in all province and territories by next spring, and Dinn wants the Premier to take the lead and begin discussions.

“The new program will help the thousands of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians who struggle to pay for prescription birth control and diabetes medicine. It will also help the province with its health care costs. Last year diabetes care alone cost our health care system approximately $72 million,” Dinn writes.

“The Pharmacare Bill is a win for all Canadians, and we expect the Premier to see the benefits for many Newfoundlanders and Labradorians and take the lead on signing on as a province.”