NS Enhances Support for Diabetics

The Province is providing funding assistance for sensor-based glucose monitoring supplies and an expansion to the Nova Scotia Insulin Pump Program.

Premier Tim Houston says, “Diabetes can be a life-changing experience and for some people it can have a big impact on their quality of life.” Houston added, “We are committed to making investments to ease the financial burden and help them better manage their care.”

The government will fund sensor-based glucose monitoring supplies through a new income-based program and existing pharmacare programs. They will be open to Nova Scotians with Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes who meet specific criteria, including the need for multiple daily injections of insulin or insulin pumps to manage their diabetes.

Nova Scotians with an annual household income of less than $60,000 will pay no deductible. Household incomes between $60,000 and $150,000 will pay a deductible between $500 and $1,000.

The Department is also expanding the Nova Scotia Insulin Pump Program by removing the age cap. The program, which helps with the costs of insulin pumps and supplies, is currently only available to Nova Scotians under the age of 26.

This investment will help about 4,000 patients cover those supplies and about 450 more Nova Scotians will be eligible for the Nova Scotia Insulin Pump Program.

More information about both programs, including how to apply and the expansion, will be released soon.

The government is investing $7.2 million in the 2024-25 budget to support diabetes care, including $5.9 million for sensor-based glucose monitoring supplies.

About 106,850 Nova Scotians have diabetes, five to 10 per cent of whom have Type 1 diabetes.

The average cost for an insulin pump is $6,300 with a five-year warranty; supplies are about $4,000 per year.
Sensor-based glucose monitoring supplies can cost between $3,000 to $4,000 annually.

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