British Columbia needs a federal authorities clampdown on prescription guidelines after 1000’s of doses of the hyped weight reduction drug Ozempic went to Individuals, doled out by a single practitioner in Nova Scotia.
Well being Minister Adrian Dix mentioned Tuesday that he’s asking provincial and federal regulators to look into two Metro Vancouver pharmacies and the Nova Scotia practitioner chargeable for 1000’s of Ozempic prescriptions issued to Individuals within the first two months of 2023.
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Although the injectable drug is prescribed primarily to deal with diabetes, Dix mentioned Ozempic’s weight reduction side-effects have been overvalued by promoting and celebrity-driven social media chatter.
“The drug’s recognition on social media, and the, I feel, nearly unprecedented marketing campaign of promoting for the drug, is driving a surge in demand and is leading to shortages of Ozempic, not but in British Columbia, however in different jurisdictions, together with the USA,” Dix mentioned.
He mentioned the province is taking motion to make sure sufferers in B.C. proceed to have entry to the drug and keep away from potential shortages.
Within the first two months of 2023, Dix mentioned upwards of 15 per cent of Ozempic prescriptions in B.C. had been being stuffed for American sufferers who obtain the remedy by mail.
Dix mentioned the state of affairs involving Ozempic is “unacceptable,” and famous that lower than half a per cent of different medication in B.C. are prescribed to non-residents.
“We’d by no means have ample provide of Ozempic in British Columbia to fulfill the wants of the American market,” he mentioned. “We have now to guard sufferers right here.”
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Nova Scotia’s Division of Well being and Wellness mentioned in an announcement that it’s conscious of the state of affairs and has reached out to the province’s Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons about “what’s going down.”
“We advise any Nova Scotians with issues a couple of doctor’s prescribing behaviour to contact the school,” the division’s assertion mentioned.
Dix mentioned it doesn’t make sense to permit B.C.’s provide to be drained and exported, pushed by elevated demand from Individuals who’ve lengthy turned to Canada as a supply of cheaper pharmaceuticals.
The drug’s public profile is exceptionally excessive, and Dix mentioned drug shortages of any kind are regarding.
“It’s Ozempic immediately, it may be one other drug tomorrow, however I don’t suppose this can be a short-term factor,” he mentioned. “It’s a major drug and it’s a part of our PharmaCare system.”
Bernie Garrett, a professor within the faculty of nursing on the College of British Columbia, mentioned off-label advertising and marketing of prescribed drugs has been problematic for years.
He mentioned Ozempic is efficient to deal with Sort 2 diabetes as designed, nevertheless it’s additionally efficient for weight reduction, albeit with important dangers connected, together with thyroid most cancers as a attainable side-effect.
Policing misinformation about pharmaceutical medication on the web is tough, Garrett mentioned, as a result of it’s “exterior of our regulatory management.”
“TikTok movies might be made wherever,” he mentioned.
Garrett mentioned Ozempic might certainly be efficient for weight reduction, nevertheless it’s not authorized or protected for that use no matter how “modern” it’s turn into attributable to its celebrity-endorsed social media hype.
“The rationale they put these restrictions on the usage of these medication is as a result of they’ve important reservations about utilizing them exterior of the scope the place they’ve examined them,” Garrett mentioned. “People who find themselves doing this are actually simply being guinea pigs.”
Dix mentioned the province is working with the drug’s provider to make sure there’s sufficient Ozempic for diabetes sufferers in B.C.
He mentioned he needs a federal authorities evaluate below the Meals and Medication Act “to deal with the regarding variety of Ozempic prescriptions emanating from practitioners in a single province.”
Ozempic is a high-value and high-demand remedy, Dix mentioned, however the giant variety of prescriptions being shipped to Individuals doesn’t essentially imply any guidelines had been damaged by the pharmacist or issuing medical skilled.
“However I feel an affordable particular person would say this isn’t what ought to occur, that medication be imported into Canada after which diverted to the USA,” Dix mentioned.
He mentioned he’s asking the Faculty of Pharmacists of British Columbia to make sure pharmacies are following drug shelling out guidelines due to the “unusually excessive” variety of prescriptions being stuffed for non-Canadian residents.
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Provincial and federal regulators have to work collectively to guard the availability of in-demand drugs and keep away from “mass exportation” of a drug wanted by Canadian sufferers, Dix mentioned.
“It’s a nationwide drawback. It’s an issue throughout the ten provinces. It is a drug that’s in demand. There’s important off-label use that everyone knows about associated to weight reduction,” he mentioned. “We have to take some motion.”
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