B.C. woman who'd been paying out of pocket for cancer care finally gets coverage
A Coquitlam woman who was forced to pay for part of her own cancer care treatment for the past 14 months is relieved her drug protocol is now being fully covered by the B.C. government.
Kari Taylor Atkins was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2016, and her treatment included Herceptin, a common medication that is paid for by the province. When her cancer returned and spread to her brain, doctors recommended she continue with Herceptin and also begin taking two new medications that the drug companies offered her free of charge under compassionate care.
But Taylor Atkins was shocked to learn if she started taking those new drugs to treat her brain tumours, the province would no longer cover Herceptin for her breast cancer.
Multi-drug cancer treatment protocols need to be approved, and while the new brain cancer drugs were given the green light for use, their cost had not yet been negotiated by the government.
“The drugs are put together as a protocol in a bundle, and until that bundle of drugs is approved, they are not approved as individuals,” said Taylor Atkins. “It had never occurred to me, never at all occurred to me, that the drugs would be required but not paid for.”
A STRESSFUL TIME
Kari’s husband Matthew Atkins was outraged.
“The drug is called Herceptin, it’s for people with HER-2 positive cancer, it’s in the name. If it’s not for her, who are we saving it for? And they just wouldn’t give it up over a paperwork issue, because they haven’t finalized that protocol yet,” Atkins said.
In order to keep her three-drug treatment plan, Taylor Atkins had to pay out of pocket for IV infusions of Herceptin at a private clinic. In the past 14 months, it’s cost the couple nearly $18,000.
“It’s been a stressful time knowing every Monday before the treatment, the pharmacy would phone and basically say we are here, we have your drugs ready to mix, we just need to make sure you can afford to pay for them,” said Taylor Atkins.
“You have to make a choice between life-saving medication for your loved one and putting food on the table,” her husband added. .
LONG-AWAITED PROVINCIAL APPROVAL
Last week, the couple finally got word the three-drug protocol has been fully approved and will now be covered by the province.
“For many people, this would be a victory. For me, it feels like we are finally at the end of getting punched in the face. Of course you are happy that it stopped, but at some point you want to stop and look back and say, 'Well, why was I getting punched in the face for the last 14 months?” said Atkins.
He and his wife say the drug protocol approval process needs to be sped up, and there should be better communication with and support for patients.
“You’re up against this big wall of government you get no response from, and it becomes very, very daunting,” Atkins said.
In a statement, Health Minister Adrian Dix said: "I am glad to hear this drug treatment protocol is now covered, so this patient and her family will no longer need to pay out of pocket. We recognize the process can be long and this puts stress on patients and their loved ones, especially at a time when they need to focus on their health.”
Dix said there is a formal and rigorous process to determine which new oncology drugs are approved for funding and added to the BC Cancer drug benefit list. “The drug treatment protocol, in this case ,went through this process and is now funded, which is great news,” his statement said.
Taylor Atkins is relieved she no longer needs to pay for part of her cancer care, but knows others are still shouldering that burden.
“There are other patients in a similar situation with a different drug protocol but have the same problem where they have to pay for it themselves,” she said.
Taylor Atkins and her husband are now advocating for changes to the way drugs are approved, so other patients don’t have to choose between paying the rent and paying for treatment.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Boeing's financial woes continue, while families of crash victims urge U.S. to prosecute the company
Boeing said Wednesday that it lost US$355 million on falling revenue in the first quarter, another sign of the crisis gripping the aircraft manufacturer as it faces increasing scrutiny over the safety of its planes and accusations of shoddy work from a growing number of whistleblowers.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
"It's a bit of a complicated pattern; we've got a lot going on," said Jennifer Smith of the Meteorological Service of Canada in an interview with CTVNews.ca on Wednesday. "[As is] typical with weather, all of these things are related."
Police tangle with students in Texas and California as wave of campus protest against Gaza war grows
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.