Correct Answer: a plan to make pharmacies use cheaper generic drugs
Passage Reference: pharmacists would have to fill prescriptions with the cheapest generic available
Why this is correct: The province proposed that pharmacists fill prescriptions with the cheapest generic available. It also proposed that generics be bought in bulk, and every speaker reacts to that plan.
Tips: For a “mainly about” question, find what the province proposed at the end of the first paragraph. Every speaker after that talks about those changes.
Why the other options are wrong:
- how drug companies choose which medicines to research: Research comes up only as the reason for patents. The editorial does not discuss how companies choose what to study.
- whether the province should build its own drug factory: The province plans to buy generics in bulk, not to build a factory.
- why doctors should prescribe fewer medicines: Nobody argues for fewer prescriptions. The question is which version of a drug fills them.
Correct Answer: Hamza Mehra
Passage Reference: If the province buys each drug from one supplier and that factory has a problem, he says, shelves across the province could be empty within weeks.
Why this is correct: Hamza Mehra, the pharmacist, worries about the bulk contract. If each drug comes from one supplier and that factory has a problem, shelves could be empty within weeks.
Tips: Each speaker worries about something different. Read each worry and ask which one is about where the medicine comes from.
Why the other options are wrong:
- Cornelius Lindberg: Cornelius Lindberg worries that new medicines will arrive later, not that one supplier could fail.
- Carmela Vallee: Carmela Vallee argues about prices after a patent expires. She says nothing about the risk of one supplier.
- Dr. Eleanor Braun: Dr. Eleanor Braun worries about switching stable patients to a different product, not about relying on one supplier.
Correct Answer: figures showing generics cost far less than brands
Passage Reference: patients should not keep paying brand prices for a copy that works the same way
Why this is correct: Vallee says patients should not keep paying brand prices for a copy that works the same way, and she estimates large savings. Figures showing that generics cost far less would support her.
Tips: Find Vallee’s reason in her lines. Pick the evidence that would make that reason stronger.
Why the other options are wrong:
- reports of empty shelves after a factory problem: Empty shelves are Mehra’s worry about a single supplier, not evidence for Vallee’s point about prices.
- patients who became unstable after a switch: Unstable patients would support Braun’s call for a medical exception, which works against a simple switch.
- data on new drugs arriving later in Canada: Late-arriving drugs are Lindberg’s warning, which Vallee argues against.
Correct Answer: doctors would be able to stop a switch for medical reasons
Passage Reference: She wants doctors to be able to write “no substitution” on a prescription when they give a medical reason.
Why this is correct: Braun wants doctors to be able to write “no substitution” on a prescription when they give a medical reason. The outcome is that a doctor could stop a switch for a medical reason.
Tips: Braun is the family physician in the third paragraph. Read her last sentence, put what she wants into your own words, then match it.
Why the other options are wrong:
- pharmacists would refuse to stock any generic drugs: Braun’s exception is written by doctors for particular patients. It does not let pharmacists stop stocking generics.
- every patient would get the brand at no extra cost: Braun’s exception needs a doctor and a medical reason. It is not a free choice for every patient.
- the province would set one price for each drug: Braun does not talk about prices. Her proposal is about doctors writing “no substitution”.
Correct Answer: doubtful as written, but open to a fix
Passage Reference: We support the first idea, but we have doubts about the second as written. ... It should also rewrite the bulk contract so that every drug has at least two suppliers, as Mehra asks.
Why this is correct: In the first paragraph the writers say they have “doubts about the second as written”. Later they ask the province to rewrite the bulk contract so that every drug has at least two suppliers. So they doubt the plan as written but are open to fixing it.
Tips: For an attitude question, read the last sentence of the first paragraph. Note how the writers talk about the bulk plan, then test each choice.
Why the other options are wrong:
- fully in favour of it as it stands: The writers have “doubts about the second as written”, so they do not accept the plan as it stands.
- firmly opposed to buying in bulk: The writers want the bulk contract rewritten with two suppliers, not dropped.
- unconcerned about shortages it could cause: The last sentence is “Savings mean little to us if the medicine is not there,” so shortages worry the writers.
Correct Answer: launch new medicines here later
Passage Reference: He argues that if provinces squeeze prices too hard, companies will launch new medicines here later than in other countries.
Why this is correct: Lindberg argues that if provinces squeeze prices too hard, companies will launch new medicines here later than in other countries.
Tips: The comment names Lindberg, so go back to his lines in the second paragraph. Find the “if” sentence and read what he says companies will do.
Why the other options are wrong:
- close their factories in Canada: Lindberg never mentions factories closing. His warning is about the timing of launches.
- stop testing new medicines: Lindberg says testing is costly, not that it would stop.
- raise the price of generics: Lindberg speaks for brand-name makers and talks about new medicines, not generic prices.
Correct Answer: hundreds of dollars a year
Passage Reference: She estimates that families with chronic conditions could save hundreds of dollars a year.
Why this is correct: Vallee estimates that families with chronic conditions could save hundreds of dollars a year.
Tips: The comment names Vallee, so find the word “estimates” in her lines. Check both the amount and how often it is saved.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a few dollars a month: A few dollars a month is far below Vallee’s estimate of hundreds of dollars a year.
- thousands of dollars a week: Vallee never suggests savings that large. Her estimate is hundreds a year.
- nothing in the first year: Vallee does not say savings would be delayed. She estimates hundreds of dollars a year.
Correct Answer: epilepsy
Passage Reference: for a small number of medicines, such as some drugs for epilepsy, even a slight change in the product can unsettle a patient
Why this is correct: Braun talks about a small number of medicines, such as some drugs for epilepsy. For these, a slight change can unsettle a stable patient.
Tips: The comment says Dr. Braun “names” a case, so look for the words “such as” in her lines. The example comes right after them.
Why the other options are wrong:
- high blood pressure: Blood pressure drugs are never mentioned. Braun’s example is epilepsy.
- seasonal allergies: Allergy medicines are never mentioned in the editorial.
- the common cold: Colds are never mentioned. Braun talks about some drugs for epilepsy.
Correct Answer: debates over federal patents
Passage Reference: Lindberg’s warning about launch dates deserves our attention, but it belongs in federal debates over patents, not in this one.
Why this is correct: In the last paragraph, the writers say Lindberg’s warning about launch dates belongs in federal debates over patents, not in this one.
Tips: The comment talks about “the editors”, so read the writers’ own view in the last paragraph. Look for the word “belongs”.
Why the other options are wrong:
- the province’s bulk contract: The bulk contract is part of this debate. The patent question is moved out of it, to federal debates.
- each doctor’s prescription notes: Prescription notes belong to Braun’s “no substitution” idea, not to the patent question.
- talks with pharmacy owners: Pharmacy owners are never named as the place for the patent question.
Correct Answer: the same active ingredient
Passage Reference: When the patent ends, other companies may make generic copies with the same active ingredient, usually at a far lower price.
Why this is correct: The first paragraph explains that once a patent ends, other companies may make generic copies with the same active ingredient.
Tips: This fact is in the first paragraph, where generic copies are explained. Read the sentence that begins “When the patent ends”.
Why the other options are wrong:
- a lower dose of the drug: The copy has the same active ingredient, not a smaller dose.
- a label from the brand maker: Generic copies are made by other companies, so they do not carry the brand maker’s label.
- a new name chosen by the province: Nothing says the province names generic copies. They contain the same active ingredient.
