The Economics of Laxatives:$60 per CSBM

I have excerpted below a portion of some material that cma.ca sends out in a subscription e-mail service. I've added a link to the original article that is referenced.

Bottom line
Tegaserod is a safe and effective treatment for chronic constipation. Although some benefit was seen at a dose of 2 mg twice daily, a better treatment effect was seen at 6 mg twice daily, and the higher dose was similarly tolerated. However, tegaserod is much more expensive than alternatives like colchicine. Since patients receiving 6 mg tegaserod had a mean of 0.6 additional complete spontaneous bowel movements per week than those taking placebo, the cost for each one was more than $60. [Emphasis added]

Reference
Kamm MA, Muller-Lissner S, Talley NJ, et al. Tegaserod for the treatment of chronic constipation: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled multinational study. Am J Gastroenterol 2005;100:362-72.

I guess, under the recent Canadian Supreme Court decision, the provinces are obliged to provide the drug, regardless of the price, so as not to "endanger life and personal security". Here is a clear case for cost-benefit analysis to be applied!