Using pharmacoepidemiology to inform drug coverage policy: initial lessons from a two-province collaborative

Prescription drug plan managers seek "real-world" evidence regarding the safety and effectiveness of drugs and drug coverage policies. University-based pharmacoepidemiologists with access to administrative health data can help meet these information needs and, by collaborating with other health plans, exploit variations in plan policy. Canada, with its universal health insurance, public drug benefit plans, and population-based linked healthcare databases, is an ideal setting for such research. Here we describe our initial experience in collaborating with researchers and drug plan managers in British Columbia and Ontario.