CETA negotiators acknowledge that the EU has asked Canada to get rid of modest protections in NAFTA for public health care, and to commit to liberalizing health insurance.

The sustainability of Canadian health care is also threatened by EU demands on intellectual property.

A recent report by professors at the Universities of Toronto and Calgary says CETA would increase prescription drug costs by $2.8 billion annually because under CETA patent protections for pharmaceutical companies will be extended and the wait for cheaper generic drugs will be even longer.

Europe, on behalf of the big pharmaceutical companies, is also pushing for Canada to lengthen the period of its monopoly drug patents and delay the availability of lower-priced generic drugs. The proposed changes would add almost $3 billion annually to Canada’s drug bill.

Canada’s high prescription drug prices are already a barrier to medically necessary medicines for millions of Canadians, and CETA will only make the situation worse.

Reference: Council of Canadians and Canadian Health Coalition