Drug Review Process

All drugs considered for benefit status in the New Brunswick Prescription Drug Program (NBPDP) Formulary are subject to a standard review process and reviewed by the Canadian Expert Drug Advisory Committee (CEDAC) or the Atlantic Expert Advisory Committee (AEAC).

The expert advisory committees are comprised of practicing physicians, pharmacists and others with expertise in drug therapy and drug evaluation. They review and evaluate scientific and economic information on new drugs and make a recommendation to provincial drug programs on whether a drug should be listed as a program benefit, including conditions and/or criteria for coverage. Listing decisions for the NBPDP are determined by the Minister of Health. Authority for deletion of products from the NBPDP Formulary remains with the Minister of Health.

National Common Drug Review

NBPDP is a participant in the national Common Drug Review (CDR). The CDR provides participating federal, provincial and territorial drug benefit plans with a systematic review of the best available clinical evidence, a critique of manufacturer-submitted pharmacoeconomic studies and a formulary listing recommendation made by the Canadian Expert Drug Advisory Committee (CEDAC).

Eligible submissions from manufacturers include those for new drugs, new combination products and drugs with new indications. Information on the CDR requirements and procedures is posted at: www.cadth.ca.

Atlantic Common Drug Review

The Atlantic Common Drug Review (ACDR) reviews the clinical and cost effectiveness of drugs
that do not fall under the national Common Drug Review (CDR) mandate and provides
formulary listing recommendations made by the Atlantic Expert Advisory Committee (AEAC) to
the Atlantic provincial drug programs.

Drugs reviewed by ACDR include:

• New single source products that do not fall under CDR mandate
• Line extensions
• Resubmissions for products not previously reviewed by CDR
• Currently listed drugs
• Drug classes

Information on the Atlantic CDR requirements and procedures is posted at:
http://www.gov.ns.ca/health/Pharmacare/committees/acdr.asp

Drug submissions should be sent to:

Submissions are accepted on an on-going basis and there are no deadlines. In general, submissions are reviewed in order of receipt of complete submissions. Manufacturers are charged for any costs associated with the review of drug submissions and resubmissions. Cheques for payment of review costs are to be made payable to the Minister of Finance. However, costs for drugs reviewed by CDR processes are infrequent.