Report Says Canada Must Modernise Drug Laws

Governments have promised to modernise Canada's antiquated laws governing therapeutic drugs since 1995 — only to balk on the threshold of change, at best tinkering around its edges,' said Hébert.

Canadians are "inadequately protected" by a Federal Food and Drugs Act, authors of a Canadian Medical Association Journal report have said, dubbing the law as a dusty relic.

Dr Paul Hébert and his co-authors have said new medicines such as rofecoxib (Vioxx) for arthritis and rosiglitazone (Avandia) for diabetes have been released based on scant understanding of the safety of the drug compounds. At the same time, older drugs are allowed to continue on the market virtually without oversight, the report says.

"Governments have promised to modernise Canada's antiquated laws governing therapeutic drugs since 1995 — only to balk on the threshold of change, at best tinkering around its edges,"