Sask. ombudsman finds long-term care residents charged too much for prescription drugs

Saskatchewan ombudsman's annual report details how a person in a long-term care facility was being charged almost three times more for medication than he had been prior to living there.

Ombudsman Mary McFadyen and her office began an investigation after a family said their father went from paying $45.40 per month for his medication to $113.31 per month once he began living in a facility operated by the former Saskatoon Health Region.

"Quite frankly, pharmacies have a captive audience of people in these long-term care facilities," McFadyen said.

"You have to use that pharmacy if you want the staff of the long-term care home to dispense drugs to your loved one there."

While the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) said it would change its policies to make sure all long-term care homes were charging the same amount of money after the complaint, McFadyen asked for more action.

After reviewing the legislation, she found that long-term care patients were supposed to be charged the least amount of fees possible, which was not being done in this case.

In the end, her office recommended that the health authority change its method of determining which pharmacies it contracts with.

It found evidence that the former Prince Albert Health Authority demanded that pharmacies disclose the cost of prescribing medications as well as any fees that would be charged to the patient.

"We thought that was a good case and we made recommendations that they have that as part of the evaluation process — what the costs are going to be for residents," she said.

"It was a fair chunk of change."

The SHA accepted the recommendation.

Inmate fairness

McFadyen's office also investigated after inmates at provincial correctional centres complained their disciplinary system was unfair.

Whenever a serving inmate is accused of breaking prison rules (for example fighting, threatening people or gang activity), they are brought before a discipline panel made up of staff from the facility.

Inmates complained that the panel was biased against them. They also argued they had no notice of evidence that would be brought against them and were not able to call fellow inmates as witnesses.

"We found that there were lots of discrepancies between how they were handled, depending on the correctional centre they were in," said McFadyen. 

"There's lots of things they could do to improve the process to make it have be a full and fair hearing."

The ombudsman made nine recommendations, including supplying inmates with all evidence that would be brought against them and allowing inmates to retain a lawyer to represent them.

The province accepted the recommendations.