Retiree calls out Sask. gov't for not communicating changes to accessing COVID-19 drug Paxlovid

A 63-year-old Saskatoon man says he has lost faith in the Saskatchewan government's health-care system, and he may move provinces because of it.

A big issue, he says, is that the province does not properly communicate new health-care information with the public. 

When Greg Pletz contracted COVID-19 in mid-May, he called the Saskatchewan 811 HealthLine and was told to contact his general practitioner for a prescription for Paxlovid, Pfizer's antiviral drug.

But that process proved to be far more difficult than he imagined. That's because the province made changes concerning Paxlovid prescriptions, but did not publicly announce those changes, Pletz said. 

Pletz has numerous health issues, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and diabetes. These, his doctor told him, qualified him for a Paxlovid prescription and full coverage of the medication. 

Paxlovid is for adults in the early days of infection who have mild to moderate symptoms of COVID-19 and who have a high risk of deteriorating into severe illness and requiring hospitalization. 

Treatment with Paxlovid must start within five days of symptom onset. The medication consists of three tablets taken every 12 hours for five days.

Pletz began exhibiting COVID-19 symptoms on Wednesday, May 15, and his doctor wanted him on the medication by May 17, a Friday evening. 

Pletz said he immediately contacted a pharmacy to fill the prescription, but they said they did not have it in stock. So Pletz then contacted another pharmacy. This one told him they could order Paxlovid for him, but that his doctor did not submit the proper, new six-page form. 

"I explained to [my doctor] what was going on. He wasn't aware that he had to fill out a different form," Pletz said.

CBC searched for information on this new form in May. The University of Saskatchewan website had it listed as the Paxlovid PAR form. That information was not available on either the Saskatchewan Health Authority's or the province's websites. As of June 4, information on the PAR form is no longer publicly accessible on the U of S website. 

In May, the Health Ministry told CBC there are over 200 pharmacies in the province participating in dispensing Paxlovid. But the Saskatchewan College of Pharmacy Professionals placed a temporary hold on Saskatchewan pharmacists prescribing Paxlovid as of April 1.

The ministry attributed this decision to a "significantly reduced demand for Paxlovid over the winter and spring, and anticipated reduced demand over the summer."

In April the PAR form became mandatory for doctors and nurses to fill out for patients in need of the drug. But Pletz said that neither the 811 nurse he spoke with nor his doctor knew about the changes.