Psychiatrist says Health Canada forces First Nations patients try outdated meds

OTTAWA – Health Canada makes some on-reserve patients jump through hoops or wait longer than non-indigenous Canadians to access prescription drugs their doctors believe they need to treat mental illnesses, a psychiatrist who has worked in First Nations communities says.

Dr. Cornelia Wieman, who spent eight years as a community-based psychiatrist at Six Nations of the Grand River Territory, a reserve near Brantford, Ont., said some prescriptions used to treat severe mental illnesses are not covered by Health Canada unless the patient has tried other antipsychotic agents first and experienced no improvement or suffered adverse reactions.

http://globalnews.ca/news/2772712/psychiatrist-says-health-canada-forces-first-nations-patients-try-outdated-meds/