As of January 1, 2017, the Employment Insurance (EI) waiting period changed. We are providing you with an email template to forward on to your advisors, to ensure they are aware of how the change impacts their clients and what action they need to take.

The email template reiterates all of the information included in the Repsource article, published January 18, 2017.

If you have any additional inquiries related to how the new legislation affects our STD and LTD plans, please email GB_Marketplace@manulife.com.

In January, Manulife hosted a webcast for advisors and we asked for your support to help stop a proposed federal tax on private health and dental plans. I have great news to share: on February 1, the Prime Minister said that the government is not moving ahead with the tax.

This is a very favorable development. The news will come as a relief to all Canadians who would have been affected by the tax. Thank you for creating awareness about this important issue. Our industry and our individual voices have been heard.

Global news article

Pharmacy benefits are evolving rapidly with the emergence of high-cost specialty drugs:

• High-cost specialty drug claims now represent one quarter of total drug spend.
• On average, a specialty drug is 30x more expensive than a traditional drug.
• Approximately 60% of drugs being developed are specialty drugs.
• Hepatitis C and its new treatments have shown how quickly and dramatically specialty drugs can impact the marketplace.
• Existing plan designs weren’t created to handle this new landscape.

Follow developments here:
Benefits Canada – Various articles
About Manulife DrugWatch™
Globe and Mail