The national PharmaCare program will start in British Columbia on Sunday, giving residents free access to a variety of diabetes medications and menopausal hormone therapy. 

Health Minister Josie Osborne says the changes will benefit more than half a million residents who are living with diabetes, and about 160,000 people with menopausal symptoms.

The provincial and federal governments signed a four-year agreement last year to implement a national PharmaCare initiative in B.C. with $670 million in federal government funding.