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Advocacy letter for people advocating

about Triptans

Home » Advocacy letter for people advocating about Triptans

Triptans are a proven and effective treatment option for managing acute migraine attacks, yet many patients still face barriers to accessing them—whether due to cost, limited availability, or lack of awareness. This page empowers you to send a letter directly to your local government representatives, advocating for better access to triptan medications. By sharing your experience, you can help raise awareness about the importance of timely migraine treatment and push for policy changes that ensure triptans are accessible and affordable for all who need them.

Make Your Voice Heard ! - Triptans

This form can be used by Canadian patient advocates to contact their local government representatives and
provincial health minister.

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  • Enter your postal code to find your local representatives.
  • Subject of the email that will be sent

  • Dear [Name of the Government Representative will be added automatically]

  • I am writing as someone living with migraine to ask you to improve access to triptans, an established and effective treatment for the acute treatment of migraine, for people in our province covered by the public drug plan.

    Migraine is a common and disabling neurological disease that affects more than 5 million Canadians. While effective treatments are available, access to appropriate medication can be challengingparticularly for people who rely on publicly funded drug coverage. 

    Triptans have been used for decades and are recognized as a standard of care and are an effective treatment for acute migraine attacks. However, access through provincial drug plans can be restricted by prior authorization requirements, quantity limits, prescribing criteria, or the absence of certain triptans from the formulary altogether.

    These restrictions can leave people with migraine facing an unfair choice: live with unnecessary pain and disability or pay out of pocket for medication they may not be able to afford.

  • My experience with migraine

  • Consider sharing: 

    • What your life was like before receiving effective preventive treatment. 
    • How many migraine or headache days you experienced. 
    • What treatments you tried and the challenges you faced accessing care. 
    • What changed after starting an anti-CGRP medication. 
    • How effective treatment has affected your ability to work, attend school, care for your family, participate in activities, or simply live your life. 

    For example: 
    “Before starting [treatment], I experienced approximately [X] migraine days each month. Since starting treatment, my migraine days have decreased to [X], allowing me to [return to work/spend more time with my family/participate in activities/etc.].” 



  • People should not have to repeatedly navigate administrative barriers to access well-established medications that their healthcare provider has determined are appropriate for them.

    Improving access to triptans would help people treat migraine attacks earlier, reduce unnecessary suffering and disability, and potentially reduce visits to emergency departments and other healthcare services. It would also allow physicians and other healthcare providers to spend less time completing paperwork and more time caring for patients.

    As my elected representative, I am asking you to advocate for improved public coverage of triptans and help ensure that people living with migraine in our province can access the medications they need without unnecessary barriers.

    Thank you for taking the time to listen to my concerns. I look forward to hearing how you and your government will work to improve access to migraine treatment.

    Sincerely,

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