Canada Health Infoway Urges End to Direct Digital Services After PrescribeIT Failure
A 77-page internal review by Canada Health Infoway recommends the federally funded non-profit stop delivering digital health services directly and instead focus on national standards, following the collapse of its nearly $300-million PrescribeIT program. The self-assessment precedes independent government-ordered reviews amid frozen funding and significant leadership turnover.
Canada Health Infoway, a federally funded non-profit organization, has released a 77-page internal review concluding that it should cease the direct delivery of digital health services. Instead, the review recommends the organization continue receiving federal funds to champion national standards for electronic health data.
The self-assessment follows the failure and shutdown earlier this year of PrescribeIT, a program that cost nearly $300 million in federal funds. According to the review, less than 5% of prescriptions flowed through the system. Low adoption was attributed to doctors not being convinced to use the platform and pharmacists being deterred by user fees. The review found that direct service delivery exposes the organization to significant adoption risks.
Approximately 200 external stakeholders and staffers were surveyed as part of the internal review. The document cited Quebec’s decision to operate its own version of PrescribeIT—with operational costs fully covered by the province—as a model reflecting the appropriate role for Infoway.
Conservative MP Dan Mazier criticized the internal review as a conflict of interest, stating, "Infoway investigated Infoway and found that Infoway is innocent." Infoway maintained that the review was designed to assess its mandate and performance rather than provide a retrospective examination or accountability assessment.
The release of the internal review precedes separate third-party reviews and audits ordered by the federal government. In June, following scrutiny at the House of Commons health committee, Ottawa froze funding for Canada Health Infoway. Health Minister Marjorie Michel's office stated that Infoway has received no funding for the 2026-27 fiscal year and that future funding decisions await the completion of the third-party reviews. Federal records show the organization received annual funding of more than $80 million in recent years, totaling over $2.6 billion since its founding in 2001.
Health Canada has awarded a $98,988 contract to KPMG LLP to conduct a strategic review of Infoway by March 31, 2027. A separate contract to audit the organization has not yet been awarded.
The period leading up to the review was marked by significant leadership changes. Infoway dismissed its long-time chief executive officer in April. Long-time chair Peter Vaughan left in June and was replaced by vice-chair Richard Jock. Executives David Fast, Angela Jonsson, and Ian Lording are also no longer with the organization.
Amid these developments, Bill S-5, legislation facilitating electronic medical record sharing, passed the Senate and began debate in the House of Commons.