News for Ontario’s health workforce

Due in 16 daysPublic health4 days agoCanada

Accel Pharma reports upcoming two-week shortage of ondansetron 8 mg tablets

Accel Pharma reports its ondansetron orally-disintegrating tablet 8 mg (ACCEL-ONDANSETRON ODT, DIN 02535327) faces an anticipated shortage from Nov 1 to Nov 15, 2026, caused by a shortage of an active ingredient.

Ondansetron is a widely used anti-nausea drug — pharmacies should check stock and alternatives before the anticipated shortage starts Nov 1.

Due in 16 daysPublic health4 days agoCanada

Accel Pharma reports upcoming two-week shortage of ondansetron 4 mg tablets

Accel Pharma reports its ondansetron orally-disintegrating tablet 4 mg (ACCEL-ONDANSETRON ODT, DIN 02535319) faces an anticipated shortage from Nov 1 to Nov 15, 2026, caused by a shortage of an active ingredient.

Ondansetron is a widely used anti-nausea drug — pharmacies should check stock and alternatives before the anticipated shortage starts Nov 1.

Due in 35 daysPublic health4 days agoCanada

Sandoz rabeprazole 20 mg supply disruption expected until early December

Sandoz Canada reports its rabeprazole sodium 20 mg enteric-coated tablet (DIN 02314185) faces an anticipated shortage from Oct 26 to Dec 4, 2026, after a disruption in the manufacture of the drug.

Rabeprazole is a commonly prescribed stomach-acid drug — prescribers and pharmacies should plan alternatives while the shortage is expected.

Due in 14 daysPublic health4 days agoCanada

Sandoz dexamethasone injection supply faces temporary shortage through mid-November

Sandoz Canada reports its dexamethasone sodium phosphate injection 10 mg/mL (DIN 00874582), for intravenous, intramuscular or intrasynovial use, faces an anticipated shortage from Oct 26 to Nov 13, 2026, driven by increased demand.

Dexamethasone injection is a staple steroid in hospitals and clinics — care teams should check stock before the anticipated shortage bites.

Due in 7 daysPublic health4 days agoCanada

Sandoz reports supply shortage of sufentanil injection through early November

Sandoz Canada reports its sufentanil citrate injection 50 mcg (DIN 02244147), for epidural or intravenous use, is in an actual shortage that began Oct 13, 2026 and is expected to run until Nov 6, 2026, driven by increased demand.

Sufentanil is used in anaesthesia and pain care — hospitals should confirm supply and alternatives while the shortage runs.

Due todayPublic health4 days agoCanada

Piperacillin-tazobactam injection from Sandoz in short supply until Oct 30 after shipping delay

Sandoz Canada reports its piperacillin and tazobactam powder for injection (DIN 02521539) is in an actual shortage that began Oct 19, 2026 and is expected to run until Oct 30, 2026, caused by a delay in shipping.

Piperacillin-tazobactam is a widely used IV antibiotic — hospitals should check stock and alternatives while the shortage runs.

Public health4 days agoCanada

Baxter to discontinue 200 mg cyclophosphamide intravenous solution by year end 2026

Baxter Corporation reports its Procytox (cyclophosphamide) 200 mg powder for intravenous solution (DIN 02241797) will be discontinued on Dec 31, 2026, for business reasons. The discontinuation decision will not be reversed.

Cyclophosphamide is a standard chemotherapy drug — cancer care teams should plan the switch to another strength or product before Dec 31.

Health policy4 days agoCanada

High cost of new pancreatic cancer drug limits patient access in Manitoba

Daraxonrasib (Rasonque), a pancreatic cancer pill approved by the U.S. FDA in August but not yet in Canada, costs about C$90,000 a month - Vancouver patient James Howard pays about US$63,000 a month for three daily doses. Its launch price is US$480,000 (C$675,000) 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.

Public health5 days agoCanada

Elective egg freezing cycles see sharp increase among Canadians

Egg-freezing retrievals in Canada rose from 217 cycles in 2013 to 2,663 in 2025, with over 22,000 eggs banked last year, up from 775, per the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society. Doctors cite high living costs, career ambitions, later parenthood and a lack of a partner. A cycle typically costs $11,000-$16,000 with medication and a year of storage, and public funding does not cover elective freezing. Freezing 20-25 eggs in the early 30s gives about a 75% chance of a baby, but success is never guaranteed - and only about 11% of people who froze eggs have gone back to thaw them.

Elective fertility preservation is surging while staying out of reach for many: a cycle costs $11,000-$16,000 with no public funding. Anyone considering it should know the costs, the odds, and that a fertility-clinic consultation is the recommended first step.

Public health6 days agoCanada

Prince Edward Island launches provincial alcohol strategy to address health care impacts

P.E.I. released a 16-recommendation alcohol strategy after five years of planning, aiming to reduce drinking rather than ban it. Measures include screening for high-risk drinking at medical appointments, youth programs, pricing by alcohol content, and putting 3 per cent of net alcohol profits into community and harm-reduction work. Alcohol causes about 7,000 ER visits and hospitalizations a year on the Island, and impaired driving rates are nearly three times the national average.

The strategy links alcohol policy directly to health care: screening in clinics, and a share of liquor profits funding harm reduction.

Health policy6 days agoCanada

Low awareness limits uptake of federal disability savings plans among eligible Canadians

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.

Services & workforce6 days agoCanada

Fatality inquiry examines emergency department overcrowding and patient capacity issues in Edmonton

A fatality inquiry heard that Prashant Sreekumar, 44, died on Dec. 22, 2025 after waiting about eight hours in the Grey Nuns emergency department in Edmonton for chest pain. A doctor testified the hospital's five general medicine units have run above capacity since at least 2024, with occupancy around 101 per cent in 2025, and that 20 to 30 per cent of beds hold patients who no longer need hospital care. The inquiry resumes in December.

The testimony puts numbers to ER overcrowding: more patients than beds, and a fifth to a third of beds taken by patients awaiting placement elsewhere.

Public health6 days agoCanada

Early influenza season hits Canada as vaccination campaigns commence for health workers

Canada’s flu season began seven weeks earlier than usual, with national positivity rates exceeding the five per cent epidemic threshold by mid-October. While H1N1 is the dominant strain, experts note that current vaccines remain effective at reducing the severity of illness and the risk of hospitalization.

You can now offer patients the current flu vaccine, which remains effective against the dominant H1N1 strain.

ResearchTech & trendsOct 23, 2026Canada

Personalized mRNA vaccine reduces melanoma recurrence risk in clinical trial

Moderna and Merck's personalized mRNA vaccine intismeran cut the risk of melanoma returning by 42 per cent two years after surgery, in a study of more than 1,100 people with high-risk melanoma. Two years on, 82 per cent of vaccinated patients were recurrence-free, versus 70 per cent on Keytruda alone. The companies are discussing approval with regulators; full results were due at a European oncology meeting in Madrid.

A personalized mRNA vaccine, matched to each patient's tumour, is moving toward approval after a large trial showed a clear gain in living without recurrence.

Due in 2 daysPublic healthOct 22, 2026Canada

British Columbia reduces virtual care capacity and funding for long COVID patients

More than 300,000 British Columbians live with long COVID, and the province's virtual-care clinic serves over 8,500 patients. From Nov. 1, virtual group appointments will be capped at 30 patients, down from groups of up to 50, and the per-patient fee falls from $14.71 to $11.42. The clinic says allied health will no longer be available in virtual group settings and patients should expect longer waits; the changes were signed off by the Medical Services Commission on Sept. 24.

The changes land Nov. 1 on a clinic that is the main virtual-care route for thousands of long COVID patients across B.C.

Public healthOct 22, 2026Canada

Saskatchewan hospitals implement rapid HIV testing for mothers during labor

Saskatchewan hospitals are now using a rapid test that gives a mother with HIV her viral load on site within about two hours, instead of waiting days for a central lab, so treatment decisions for mother and newborn can be made at once. The practice is in use in Regina and Saskatoon and is rolling out to Melfort and more remote communities. Saskatchewan is the first province to use the test this widely; in 2024 its first-time HIV diagnosis rate was three times the national average, second only to Manitoba.

A two-hour result instead of days means treatment for mother and baby can start before they leave the hospital.

Health policyOct 22, 2026Canada

Federal committee to vote on legislation restricting sports betting advertisements in Canada

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.

ResearchServices & workforceOct 21, 2026Canada

Nursing employment increases in Canada despite ongoing vacancy and wage challenges

A Statistics Canada report shows registered nursing employment grew by over 100,000 positions since 2019. Despite this growth, vacancy rates remain high, particularly for licensed practical nurses, and inflation-adjusted wages for many nursing roles have declined since 2019.

Health policyOct 21, 2026Canada

National initiative targets reduction of antipsychotic prescriptions in long-term care facilities

A new national target aims to limit antipsychotic use in long-term care residents without psychosis to 15%. Current Canadian rates sit at 24%, prompting calls for cross-sectoral collaboration to improve prescribing, monitoring, and deprescribing practices across acute, community, and long-term care settings.

Expect increased focus on reviewing antipsychotic prescriptions and improving care transitions to meet this new national safety benchmark.

Health policyOct 21, 2026Canada

Ontario restricts out-of-country drug funding for cancer patients

Sabrina Apitz-Grossman, 31, was told she has 12 to 18 months to live with synovial sarcoma that spread to her lungs; her doctors recommend Tecelra, a US-approved treatment costing US$727,000, but OHIP denied out-of-country coverage and her appeal and case-by-case application both failed. After a court ordered coverage for another patient in July, Ontario changed the rules so out-of-country drug treatments are funded only if already funded in the province and temporarily unavailable.

The rule change closes the route other patients used to get life-extending treatment abroad when Ontario does not fund it.

Public healthOct 21, 2026Canada

Ontario gambling addiction and related suicides triple following online casino expansion

Nearly 130,000 Ontarians now show signs of gambling problems, about triple the roughly 43,000 in 2018, according to new Alberta Gambling Research Institute research, after private online casino games and sports betting expanded in 2022. Gambling-related suicides also tripled after 2022, from an average of five a year in 2016-2021, the Chief Coroner's office says. Ontario says it has spent $421 million on responsible gambling and addiction treatment since 2018.

The numbers tie the 2022 online-casino expansion to a tripling of both problem gambling and gambling-related suicides in Ontario.

ResearchTech & trendsOct 21, 2026Canada

Rapid antifungal treatment improves survival rates for patients with Candida septic shock

A study involving Manitoba researchers found that the time taken to start appropriate antifungal therapy is the most significant factor for survival in Candida septic shock. Patients treated within two hours of persistent hypotension had an 86% survival rate, with outcomes worsening by 5% for every hour of delay thereafter.

For patients with suspected Candida septic shock, prioritizing the rapid administration of appropriate antifungal therapy within the first two hours of hypotension is critical.

Health policyOct 20, 2026Canada

Health ministers meeting in Winnipeg focuses on workforce mobility and health data

Federal, provincial, and territorial health ministers met in Winnipeg on October 16, 2026, to discuss healthcare system reforms. Key priorities included improving workforce mobility for internationally educated professionals, advancing national public health data sharing, and ensuring the sustainability of long-term funding for rare disease treatments and community care services.

Health policyOct 20, 2026Canada

Federal funding expands mental health and addiction services for Black Canadians

Health Canada announced more than $6 million for initiatives to improve culturally responsive mental health and substance use services for Black Canadians, announced by federal Health Minister Marjorie Michel in Toronto. The funding runs through the Substance Use and Addictions Program and the Supporting Community Mental Health Crisis Response Initiative as part of Canada's Black Justice Strategy, covering culturally safe prevention, harm reduction, treatment and recovery services, expanded supports for Black youth and families, peer mentorship, provider training and community-based crisis res

Winnipeg's HSDE is among the funded organizations, so frontline workers there can point clients to school-based workshops, peer support and drop-in help.

Health policyOct 20, 2026Canada

Ontario petition seeks public funding for long-term psychotherapy services

Guelph psychotherapist Marinela Trickett has launched a petition asking Ontario to cover long-term supportive psychotherapy under OHIP, saying her clinic gets daily calls from people who cannot access long-term support and many wait until crisis, then go to hospitals where their needs are not met. With Guelph MPP Mike Schreiner she will bring the petition, aiming for 5,000 signatures, to Queen's Park in November. OHIP now covers psychotherapy only from a doctor or psychiatrist; private sessions average $150 to $180 each.

It asks Ontario to treat psychotherapy as medically necessary care, not a private expense, a question frontline workers hear from patients every day.