The Governor in Council has appointed Thomas J. Digby as the new Chairperson of the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board (PMPRB).
According to the Government’s news release, “Mr. Digby is a lawyer with expertise in intellectual property and has an extensive educational background in the Biological Sciences” and has been appointed for a term of five years. Under the Patent Act, the Chairperson and other Board Members can serve a maximum of two five-year terms.
Mr. Digby replaces the Board’s previous Chairperson, Dr. Mitchell Levine. Dr. Levine was originally appointed as a Member and Vice-chairperson of the Board in 2011 and served two full terms, becoming Chairperson in February 2018. His second term ended in November 2021, following which Vice-chairperson Melanie Bourassa Forcier became Acting Chairperson. Ms. Bourassa Forcier resigned in 2022; according to the PMPRB, the Vice-chairperson position remains vacant at this time.