See how ESC worked to improve eczema care, raise awareness, and support patients across Canada in 2026

ESC is advocating for you! We are working tirelessly to advocate for patients and caregivers to improve the lives of Canadians living with eczema. ESC’s advocacy strategy is focused on three pillars: (1) education and awareness, (2) healthcare and treatment access, and (3) research.

We have been raising awareness and impacting decision-making across Canada to better understanding of the burden of eczema, and improve both care and access to treatments.

ESC has engaged with stakeholders and agencies to achieve our goals.

These actions include collaborations and outreach, including:

National awareness month campaign

• Each November, ESC raises awareness about eczema, and this November, ESC is #ShiningALightonEczema with our national awareness month campaign.
• Monuments across Canada will be lit up blue in honour of Eczema Awareness Month to raise awareness of our condition and community. The campaign is aims to reduce the stigma around eczema, increase awareness about the impact of living with the condition, and urge decision-makers to improve access to care and treatments.
• We are sharing patient stories and data around the impact of eczema with communications and media outreach.

Government awareness

• We share awareness campaigns with Ministers of Health to illuminate patient data and stories, helping decision-makers understand the burdens and unmet needs of eczema patients.
• We provide pre-budget submissions to provinces to ask for atopic dermatitis care and treatments be included in their health care budget planning.

Health technology assessment

• We generate patient input submissions to the Canadian Drug Agency (CDA-AMC) for new therapies under review, providing both qualitative and quantitative data from the patient community.
• We meet with the Canadian Drug Agency (CDA-AMC) to share the burden of patients and the unmet needs in our patient population, and to highlighting our concern with negative recommendations for the reimbursement of innovative medicines.
• We prepare provincial-level input submissions to provinces across Canada for drug reimbursement reviews and also provide feedback on recommendations and criteria.
• We create patient input submissions and provide input to the Institut national d’excellence en santé et services sociaux (INESSS) for new therapies under review for the province of Quebec.

Public payers – provincial and territorial drug plans

• ESC shares our Eczema Awareness Month messaging to share the burden of the condition and the needs of patients with decision-makers.
• We provide input and feedback from patients and health care providers on reimbursement criteria to ensure they are fair and safe for patients.
• ESC advocates for equitable access to therapies across provinces, territories, and jurisdictions.
• ESC joins meetings with Non-Insured Health Benefits for First Nations and Inuit (NIHB) in collaboration with ESC medical contributor Dr. Rachel Asiniwasis, to raise awareness about the eczema crisis in rural communities and advocate for Indigenous patient access to therapies and emollients for improved management of eczema.

Private payers – insurance providers

• ESC provides input to private payers (insurance providers) to better understand the impact of eczema on workers, including work productivity and work absenteeism.
• We share Eczema Awareness Month messaging to share the burden of the condition and the needs of patients.

Collaborations with advocacy organizations

• ESC is a member of the Best Medicines Coalition (BMC) in Canada, an organization dedicated to seeking timely access to medicines for patients in need, including those in the eczema community.
• ESC is a member of Medicines Access Coalition BC, advocating for improved equity for access to medications for patients in the province of British Columbia.

Medical association collaboration

• ESC has collaborated with the Canadian Dermatology Association to align the concerns of its members with the concerns of patients and caregivers.
• ESC is dedicated to improving eczema care for Canadians from coast to coast and is a proud exhibitor at the following conferences: Canadian Dermatology Association, Canadian Paediatric Society, Family Medicine Forum, and Rural and Remote Medicine.

Global awareness

• As a member of Global Skin, ESC contributes to the Canadian eczema community’s perspective and advocates for ongoing public awareness and social acceptance of skin conditions.
• ESC participated in the 2026 Harmonizing Outcome Measures in Eczema (HOME) meeting, joining global partners to revisit the HOME Core Outcome Set (COS) after seven years of implementation.

Want to get involved with ESC and raise your voice? You can share your story and help to make a difference. Contact us and join our mission.

June 2026