The fundamental problem causing Canada’s health-care scarcity is a lack of private spending
Without serious government course correction, Canada is headed for a health-care squeeze. The senior dependency ratio in Canada – the ratio of people 65 years and older relative to the working-age population (15 to 64 years old) – is projected to rise from 25 per cent today to around 40 per cent by 2042. And…
If you move from B.C. to Newfoundland, for example, you're likely to be denied coverage
St. John’s sees the sunrise 4.5 hours before Victoria. This means Newfoundlanders are the first to see the light and British Columbians are the last. Unfortunately, some who leave the West Coast to study on the Rock get an unwelcome surprise. Students who arrive from other provinces are denied health coverage, as are their dependents…
There’s no escaping the fact that discovering, developing and testing new drugs costs a lot of money
By Bacchus Barua and Steven Globerman The Fraser Institute It seems quite clear that the current Liberal administration wants the federal government to become the public insurer for prescription drugs, in part to contain drug costs. It’s a wrongheaded plan. In 2017, the government proposed changes to the way it limits drug prices in Canada.…
Spending continues to rise but Albertans have diminished access to care and face above-average wait times
By Bacchus Barua and Jason Clemens The Fraser Institute Albertans, like all Canadians, spend comparatively high amounts on health care but only receive modest performance from the system compared to other universal care countries. Thankfully, there’s much the province can (and should) do to improve its health-care system. According to the Canadian Institute for Health…
But much still hinges on the outcome of the ongoing court case in B.C.
By Amélie Quesnel-Vallée and Rachel McKay EvidenceNetwork.ca Ask a random Canadian if our health system looks more like that of the United States or the United Kingdom. Chances are, most will respond that our system is nothing like the U.S. – which is largely paid for privately – and every bit like the U.K., which…
The James Smith Cree Nation could create what would be Saskatchewan’s first private-pay MRI facility
A First Nation community about 70 kilometres southeast of Prince Albert, Sask., hopes to generate profit within five years from a private MRI clinic. The James Smith Cree Nation could create what would be the province’s first private-pay MRI facility. This became possible when the Saskatchewan government passed legislation in 2016 allowing for such facilities…
Canadians have the highest rates of emergency room visits among high-income countries. We need a better care model
You get home after a long day at work and the cough that’s been bugging you just doesn’t seem to be letting up. Your muscles ache, you have chills and you hear a slight wheeze when you breathe out. Do you head to the local emergency department? A walk-in clinic? Or does your family doctor…
Our closed government-heavy system stands in stark contrast to other universal health-care systems that have shorter wait times
It’s no secret that Canadians face some of the longest health-care wait times in the developed world. According to the Fraser Institute’s annual survey of physicians, at 21.2 weeks from referral to treatment, Canadians waited longer in 2017 than ever before. And for some patients, wait times can have serious consequences. While this may be…
We can address the supply of surgical procedures, the demand for surgery and improve co-ordination within the system
Long wait times are the vulnerable soft underbelly of the Canadian health system. Canadians treasure our single-payer, publicly-funded program of physician and hospital care, virtually as a defining part of our national identity. And yet, increasing legal and political pressure over quick access to elective surgeries – cataract extraction and joint replacement, for example –…
For the first time, the estimated number of Canadians who waited for medically-necessary treatment exceeded one million in 2017: Fraser Institute
Waiting for surgery and medical treatment can be a painful and personally frustrating experience for many Canadians. It’s also a costly one. A new study released on Wednesday by the Fraser Institute says long waits cost Canadians $1.9 billion in lost wages last year and for the first time, the estimated number of Canadians who…