One of the Canada’s largest cannabis companies has announced that it will offer its employees a benefits plan that includes coverage for any medical marijuana authorized by a physician or nurse practitioner.
A release from producer Aurora Cannabis said that the new employee benefits plan goes live August 01, 2018. The new plan will be administered by Sun Life Financial, and it will allow employees and their dependants to receive coverage for medical cannabis under the Extended Health Care plan.
“The speed with which Canada’s largest insurers are moving to cover the costs of medical cannabis reflects the increasing recognition of cannabis-based therapies, and marks a significant milestone for patients across the country,” said Aurora Cannabis senior vice-president of human resources Debra Wilson.
Wilson added that the decision to add medical cannabis to the company’s benefits plan is a reflection of Aurora’s strong support for the medication.
“Including medical cannabis in the company’s benefits plan reflects our position as one of the leading advocates for the availability of medical cannabis, as well as employee health and wellness being major pillars in Aurora’s mission to be the employer of choice in the sector,” she explained.
“Offering insurance coverage for medical cannabis, and making the reimbursement process easy, is the right thing to do, and Aurora is proud to be a leader in this area,” added Aurora director of advocacy and corporate social responsibility Jonathan Zaid. “At the same time, we recognize there is still more work to be done to ensure patients across Canada receive coverage for medical cannabis, and we intend to continue supporting advocacy initiatives in this area.”
Sun Life has been offering “marijuana-friendly” group benefits policies since 2016 – other insurers are quickly following suit as national legalization of the substance nears.
