Drugs are the fastest rising cost in the health care system.
Antibiotics Top of the list of drugs prescribed to patients, but not taken, are antibiotics, followed by painkillers and heart drugs, according to the study of unused medications by the Alberta Medical Association and the Alberta Pharmaceutical Association. The study examines drugs returned under an ongoing province-wide program called EnviRx. This is a very useful piece of research which gives a much better feel for how big this problem is and why it occurs. Now we can start looking at strategies to put in place to deal with the issue. Alberta Health spokesman Garth Norris said the health minister strongly supports the used-drug roundup, begun in 1988.