Guides
The Trillium Drug Program, explained
Ontario’s drug program for people whose prescriptions cost a lot compared with what their household earns. How the deductible works, and how to apply without losing money.
The short version
Your household pays a deductible of about 4% of its after-tax income, spread over the year. After that, each prescription costs up to $2 under the Trillium Drug Program.
Trillium is part of the Ontario Drug Benefit, and it covers the same list of medicines: more than 5,900 on the formulary, and almost 1,500 more through the Exceptional Access Program when specific criteria are met.
The difference is who it is for, and the deductible. If you are 65 or over, or on Ontario Works or ODSP, you are already covered another way. The Ontario Drug Benefit guide explains those routes.
Who should apply
Ontario says you should apply if all of these are true:
- You live in Ontario
- You have a valid Ontario health card number
- You do not already qualify for the Ontario Drug Benefit another way
- No insurance plan pays for 100% of your prescriptions
- Your household spends about 4% or more of its after-tax income on prescriptions
Having a workplace or school plan does not rule you out. If the plan leaves your household with large costs, Trillium can pick up what the plan does not pay.
You report every plan that covers anyone in the household on the application. Trillium works alongside them and does not pay twice for the same thing.
Your household
You apply as a household. That means you and your spouse, if you have one. It also means a child, grandchild, parent or grandparent you live with, when one of you depends on the other for support. A legal guardian counts as a parent here.
For Trillium, a spouse includes a partner you are not married to, if you have lived together for at least a year or have a child together.
How the deductible works
The deductible is what your household pays itself, on the first covered prescriptions, before Trillium starts paying. Your confirmation letter tells you the amount.
For most people it is about 4% of household income after tax. That is the net income on line 23600 of your Notice of Assessment for the previous tax year. Money taken out of a Registered Disability Savings Plan is subtracted.
As an illustration only: a household with a net income of $50,000 would have a deductible of about $2,000 for the year, or about $500 a quarter.
It is paid by the quarter. The year is split into four, and so is the deductible. At the start of each quarter you pay for covered prescriptions yourself until that quarter’s share is paid. Then Trillium covers you until the quarter ends.
- First quarter: August, September, October
- Second quarter: November, December, January
- Third quarter: February, March, April
- Fourth quarter: May, June, July
A shortfall carries over. If you spend less than a quarter’s share, the rest is added to the next quarter. Ontario’s example: a $25 share with $20 spent leaves $5, so the next quarter’s share is $30. Nothing carries past July into the next year.
Only your own money counts. Anything a private plan, a drug company or a discount card pays does not count towards the Trillium deductible.
Paying for a plan earns a credit. The program’s guide says premiums you pay for private insurance count towards the deductible, up to $100 a year for one person or $200 for a household. You send proof each year.
If your income changes by 10% or more, you can ask Trillium to recalculate. The new amount applies from the start of the quarter it is worked out in, not to earlier quarters.
Choose your start date carefully
The first time you apply, the form asks when your coverage should start. Your deductible is reduced for the part of the year that has already gone, so a later date can mean a smaller deductible.
But prescriptions filled before your start date are not covered and do not count, and once your enrolment is confirmed the date cannot be changed. The program’s guide suggests starting no later than:
- The date of your earliest eligible receipt, if you have already paid for prescriptions this program year
- The date your prescription is filled, if you are about to start a medicine
- The day you leave hospital, if you are going home with a prescription
- The day you turn 25, if your OHIP+ coverage is ending
- The day after other drug coverage ends, if you are losing a plan
Not sure?
You can leave the date blank. The application waits until you contact the program and give one.
How to apply
Gather the household’s details
Everyone in the household, and every drug plan any of you has. Everyone 18 or over signs a consent that lets Ontario check the household’s income with the Canada Revenue Agency.
Apply online
The application is at forms.ontariodrugbenefit.ca, and it checks you have included everything before you submit. For a paper copy, call 1-800-575-5386.
Wait for the letter
It confirms who is covered and your deductible. Tell your pharmacist and prescriber you are in Trillium, so they know which medicines are covered.
The program year runs from 1 August to 31 July. Apply by 30 September to be paid back for eligible prescriptions from the year that has just ended.
After that, enrolment renews by itself each year, as long as the household files its income taxes on time.
Claiming money back
Covered prescriptions you pay for yourself count towards the deductible. Once you have paid more than a quarter’s share, Trillium pays you back the difference.
Claims go through the Receipt Submission Form at forms.ontariodrugbenefit.ca. You need the official prescription receipt, signed by a pharmacist, not a till receipt. A lost one can be replaced by a Patient Medical Expense Report from the pharmacy.
Everything for a program year must arrive by 31 October, three months after the year ends.
Kind Pharmacy and Trillium
Kind Pharmacy is not yet accredited and is not open, so it cannot bill Trillium yet. The coverage and costs page says what it intends to do about applications once it opens.
If the medicine you are thinking about is PrEP, the PrEP cost guide sets Trillium beside the other ways it can be paid for.
Common questions
What is the difference between Trillium and the Ontario Drug Benefit?
Trillium is one way into the Ontario Drug Benefit, and it covers the same medicines. It is the route you apply for, and the only one with a deductible based on household income.
Is the Trillium deductible per drug?
No. It is per household, per program year, across all of the household’s covered prescriptions, and it is paid a quarter at a time.
Can I get Trillium if I have insurance through work?
Yes, if the plan does not pay for 100% of your prescriptions and what is left is high for your household income. You report the plan on your application.
Do I have to reapply every year?
No. Enrolment renews automatically each year if the household files its income taxes on time.
Can I apply part-way through the year?
Yes. Your first deductible is reduced for the part of the year that has passed. Choose the start date carefully, because prescriptions filled before it are not covered.
Sources
Checked against these on 2 October 2026.
Get help with high prescription drug costs, on ontario.ca
The Trillium Drug Program Guide, on Ontario’s Central Forms Repository