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People with inflammatory bowel diseases and their supporters rallied at the Alberta legislature Sunday to protest a move by the provincial government that could see thousands of them shifted to cheaper medications.

The Opposition NDP said the UCP government’s plan to shift some Crohn’s and colitis patients to “biosimilar” medications is a further attack on public health care, exemplified by the decision earlier this week to cut hundreds of nursing positions and other frontline health-care workers.

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Around 100 people braved the chilly weather Sunday morning to attend the rally, organized by Crohn’s and Colitis Canada.

“To me it’s asinine that I’m even here having this conversation,” said Nick Arrand, a 35-year-old Crohn’s patient. “The government should have no right to tell you what medications to take.”

Arrand and thousands of other Albertans received notice last month from the manufacturer of Remicade, a biologic drug and immunosuppressant used to treat Crohn’s and other illnesses.