Alberta signed deal to import medication from Turkey despite recommendations against it

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s government signed a $70-million deal to import children’s pain relief medication from Turkey in 2022 despite expert advice that the province ask Ottawa to take the lead to avoid the risk of a “significant net loss of funds,” according to briefing documents obtained by The Globe and Mail.Briefing notes prepared by Alberta Health officials in November, 2022, for then-health minister Jason Copping and Ms. Smith outlined three options to import five million bottles of pediatric ibuprofen and acetaminophen from Atabay Pharmaceuticals amid a North American shortage for children’s pain relievers. The documents detailed the downsides of each path.