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Health policyCanada

A new cancer drug costs as much as a home down payment each month. Doctors say that's greed, not health care

Daraxonrasib (Rasonque), a pancreatic cancer pill approved by the U.S. FDA in August but not yet in Canada, costs about $90,000 Cdn a month - Vancouver patient James Howard pays about $63,000 US a month for three daily doses. Its launch price is $480,000 US ($675,000 Cdn) a year. Trials showed it halted or reversed tumour growth in nearly a third of patients, versus about 10% on chemotherapy, and lifted survival from under 7 months to about 13. Oncologists say the price puts a life-extending drug out of reach; the maker says it reflects therapeutic advance and supports innovation.

CancerCare Manitoba oncologist Dr. Ralph Wong says patients in his practice are crying because they cannot access this drug, which is not yet approved in Canada - a stark example of how U.S. drug pricing leaves Canadians paying out of pocket or going without.

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News source: A new cancer drug costs as much as a home down payment each month. Doctors say that's greed, not health care (opens in a new tab) — CBC News

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Due tomorrowHealth policyManitoba

Autism advocates take to the legislature to make sure government keep its word on policy reversal

Dozens of autism advocates rallied outside the Manitoba Legislature on Saturday to hold the government to its reversal on Bill 232, the autism screening and supports bill, ahead of Tuesday's vote. The government had proposed amendments excluding adults after a 14-hour committee hearing, but Families Minister Nahanni Fontaine rolled them back Friday after public outcry, and now says it will support the bill in its original all-ages form. Rally speakers, including Liberal MLA Cindy Lamoureux, who introduced the bill, said supports must continue across the lifespan, not just in childhood.

If Bill 232 passes in its original form on Tuesday, autistic adults in Manitoba keep access to screening, diagnosis and supports across their lifespan instead of losing them at 18 — a direct follow-up to the government's policy reversal.

News source: CBC News (opens in a new tab)

Health policyCanada

The RDSP was meant to help disabled Canadians save for the future. Yet many don't know it exists

Only about 34 per cent of Canadians eligible for the Registered Disability Savings Plan have opened one, a 2024 Statistics Canada investigation found, versus roughly 68 per cent uptake for TFSAs and RRSPs. The plan offers up to $70,000 in federal grants and $20,000 in bonds, but take-up is held back by low awareness, few providers, and a 16-page clinician questionnaire needed to qualify for the Disability Tax Credit.

Frontline workers may be the first to tell eligible clients about a plan worth up to $90,000 in federal help that most never hear about.

News source: CBC News (opens in a new tab)

Due tomorrowHealth policyManitoba

Manitoba government drops plan to limit new autism strategy to children

Manitoba is dropping amendments that would have limited its new autism strategy to children, so the bill will pass in its original all-ages form, Families Minister Nahanni Fontaine announced. The reversal followed public outcry, 70+ emails to her office and a 14-hour committee hearing, from adults and families who said supports like help staying employed and living independently should not end at 18. Fontaine also announced $5 million to expand children's autism services at St. Amant, $1.75 million for overnight respite care, and said community pediatricians can now submit autism diagnoses.

Autistic adults in Manitoba keep access to the strategy's supports, employment and independent-living help won't cut off at 18, and the St. Amant funding expands children's services and respite care.

News source: CBC News (opens in a new tab)

Health policyCanada

MPs moving to restrict gambling ads in Canada amid mounting harms

The federal heritage committee meets next week to vote on Bill S-211, which would rein in sports betting ads across Canada; the bill has already passed the Senate. A CBC analysis of seven televised 2026 NHL playoff games found viewers faced 3,000 gambling messages, with ads or logos appearing two to three times a minute, and 95 per cent carried no harm-reduction or age-restriction information. Ontario and Alberta oppose the bill.

If the committee approves it, the bill goes to a final House vote, the first federal move to limit sports betting ads.

News source: CBC News (opens in a new tab)