Family struggling to pay for insulin calls on Alberta to strike a deal with Ottawa on pharmacare

A Calgary mother and father say they're forced to chose between buying Christmas gifts and paying for diabetes medication for their children, and they're pleading with the Alberta government to hammer out a deal with Ottawa on the federal pharmacare program.

The Pharmacare Act, which lays the groundwork for a universal program in Canada, became law in October. The first phase is intended to provide some diabetes medication and contraceptives for free to Canadians, through individual agreements with the provinces.  

While no money is flowing yet, B.C. was the first province to sign a memorandum of understanding.

The Alberta government signalled early that it would opt out.  It's unclear if the province intends to participate in any negotiations.

"I feel frustrated and angry," said Melissa Mathison, whose two children, ages nine and 12,  are living with Type 1 diabetes, a chronic auto-immune disease that often appears during childhood.

The family is struggling to afford $600 a month for insulin and blood sugar monitoring supplies.

"We are racking up credit card debt," she said. "We're kind of choosing medical supplies and medications over Christmas gifts. It's not a really awesome situation." 

According to Mathison, her family was cut off of the Alberta Child Health Benefit because their annual income is $100 above the threshold.

Mathison works a part-time job in the evenings so she can go to the school during the day to help her kids with their diabetes care. She has no health benefits.

Her husband, Michael Woolley, is on long-term disability due to severe epilepsy. He has a limited medical expense account through his employer, which the family exhausted quickly.

Woolley wakes up every morning worrying about the health of his children and how his family is going to make ends meet.

"It's a daily concern for me," he said.

"Without the help of the government, the crack we've slipped through literally can be life-threatening."  

"These stories are unfortunately rather common. And it is heartbreaking," said Dr. Doreen Rabi, an endocrinologist and head of the University of Calgary's division of endocrinology and metabolism.