Financial coverage of smoking cessation medications in Canada, 2024
Learn about programs that provide financial coverage of smoking cessation medications.
This resource summarizes the publicly funded programs that provide financial coverage of smoking cessation medications in Canada. View the map below and click through the provinces and territories to learn more about eligibility and coverage for smoking cessation medications.
Some cancer care settings offer people with cancer access to free smoking cessation medications at the point of care, and two provinces offer free nicotine replacement therapy for any resident with a health card; these special programs are highlighted on the map.
Key changes to coverage since the last update in 2021:
- Four provinces (Saskatchewan, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Newfoundland and Labrador) have joined Manitoba to provide ongoing funding for smoking cessation medications for people with cancer.
- Coverage of bupropion and varenicline by the Non-Insured Health Benefits (NIHB) Program for First Nations and Inuit increased from 12 weeks per year to 24 weeks per year. People who have coverage under extended health benefits programs in Northwest Territories and Nunavut also benefit from this change, because those programs use NIHB limits.
- People have greater access to smoking cessation medications in Yukon and British Columbia, because these jurisdictions have joined the nine others that allow pharmacists to prescribe these medications.
Quick facts
- Quitting smoking after a cancer diagnosis improves people’s survival and quality of life, and it reduces costs to the healthcare system.1,2
- The use of smoking cessation medications, including nicotine replacement therapy (e.g., patch, gum, lozenge, inhaler, spray), varenicline, and bupropion, can more than double quit rates.1
- Gaps in financial coverage and access to smoking cessation medications have created barriers for many people who want to quit smoking.
Financial coverage of smoking cessation medications in Canada, 2024
Hover over each province and territory for more information about programs† that provide financial coverage* of smoking cessation medications. Click on each province and territory page for details about the programs.
▮ |
Free medications at the point of care for people with cancer |
|---|---|
▮ |
Free medications at the point of care for people with cancer (limited reach or short-term funding) |
▮ |
No free medications at the point of care for people with cancer |
 |
Free nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) for any resident with an active health card |
Free smoking cessation medications at the point of care for people with cancer :Programs and the smoking cessation medications they cover:
N |
Nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) (over-the-counter) |
|---|---|
B |
Bupropion (prescription medication) |
V |
Varenicline (prescription medication) |
Free smoking cessation medications at the point of care for people with cancer :†Descriptions of smoking cessation medication coverage in lung cancer screening programs are found in the Lung screening in Canada, 2023-24 report.
*Costs of medications are fully covered unless otherwise specified.
Related resources
- Business case to improve access to smoking cessation medications in Canada (2021)
- Smoking cessation in cancer care across Canada, 2022-23
PDF table available
To request a PDF version of a table that lists the programs that provide financial coverage of smoking cessation medications in Canada, including eligibility and coverage, please email primary.prevention@partnershipagainstcancer.ca.
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Office on Smoking and Health. Smoking cessation. A report of the Surgeon General. Atlanta, GA; 2020.
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Cancer Institute. Treating smoking in cancer patients: an essential component of cancer care. National Cancer Institute tobacco control monograph 23. Bethesda, MD; 2022.