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The high-profile bureaucrat at the centre of the Ontario government's battle with pharmacies is calling it quits.
In three years as an assistant deputy minister and executive officer, Helen Stevenson has presided over massive changes to how the province buys prescription drugs. Now, as the bitter fight to lower the cost of generic drugs nears its end, multiple sources say she has informed the government that she is leaving the post, likely to return to the private sector.
"This is not unexpected," a senior government official said in response to Ms. Stevenson's decision. But it will nevertheless leave a large void to be filled, and cast uncertainty over future cost-saving efforts.
Ms. Stevenson, the first person appointed full-time to the position of drug czar after it was created by 2006 legislation, was pivotal to the province's efforts to rein in health-care spending - enjoying unusual leeway for a provincial civil servant.
She was the point-person for negotiations to cut generic drug prices in half by banning professional allowances - the payments manufacturers make to drugstores in return for stocking their products. That made her extremely unpopular with pharmacies, but earned effusive praise from Dalton McGuinty's Liberals, who appreciated both her steely behind-the-scenes resolve and her communications skills in dealing with the media.
It also captured the interest of other provinces, whose officials have sought her advice as they prepare for similar fights over generic prices.
Ms. Stevenson's dealings with brand drug manufacturers have received less public attention. But that's where she seems to have had the greatest autonomy, deciding which drugs the Ontario Drug Benefit would cover - a responsibility previously left to the provincial cabinet.
The former health-care consultant has wielded that authority to achieve "volume discounts," refusing to list some drugs until manufacturers reward Ontario's buying power with prices below the going rate. The discounts are provided via undisclosed rebates, so their cumulative value is unclear, but it's believed to total hundreds of millions of dollars annually.
Controversy over those rebates may have contributed to Ms. Stevenson's decision to leave her job. Brand companies were furious earlier this year when, after freedom-of-information requests and acting on the instructions of the province's Information and Privacy Commissioner, she released a chunk of related records. The release caused other provinces to realize they were paying higher prices, and an ensuing backlash (notably in Quebec) may jeopardize future rebates in Ontario.
Provincial Liberals contended that Ms. Stevenson had been planning to leave for some time, once the generics fight was over. They pointed out that, although she earned $280,000 last year, she took a pay cut to work in government.
A senior industry representative noted the difficulty of the work, calling it "a tough job without enough resources." It's also a job that has placed Ms. Stevenson under constant personal attack, and prompted her to travel with a security detail after complaining about threats of violence.
Ms. Stevenson is expected to leave this summer, by which point the lower generic prices will likely have taken effect. Her successor is not yet known, nor whether that person will enjoy the same degree of trust from the government.
Adam Radwanski