We all pay for Canada’s Health Care System. Shouldn’t We Demand Better?

Sponsored Content | February 7th, 2023

Chat with someone from another country and Canada’s publicly funded health care system often comes up in a positive light. While we can be proud of some aspects of our health care system, the reality is that we consistently rank near the bottom in key areas compared to similar countries.

In a recent CARP survey of older Canadians, nearly two-thirds of respondents believe Canada should aim to be among the top three countries in the world when it comes to health system performance.

“Why don’t we look more to good international examples? Same old same old isn’t going to do it. We need a transformational change. Other countries do it better.”[1]

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed multiple long-standing problems with Canada’s health care system. We now have an opportunity to make the investments and embrace new technologies required to build the system Canadians want, need, and deserve.

Let’s talk about the problems and then what needs to change.

New Medicines

In Canada, we wait an average of three and a half years from the first global launch before new medicines are approved for public funding. Compare that to about 1 year in Germany, or less than 6 months in the USA.[2] We also rank 18th out of 20 comparable countries from first global approval.[3]

Diagnostic Procedures

Patients also experience significant wait times for various diagnostic technologies across the provinces. For instance, compared to similar countries, Canada ranks 26th out of 29 in number of MRI machines per capita.[4]

Doctors

Canada fares poorly in terms of number of doctors per capita, ranking 28th out of 30 countries.[3]

 Hospital Beds Per Capita

Canada is also severely lagging in hospital beds per capita, as the pandemic made very clear. Compared to similar countries, we rank 23rd out of 28 in number of hospital beds.[3]

These are grim statistics. So how can we get our health system back on track to being among the best in the world?

CARP believes we can achieve this through a three-point plan:

1: Focus on results that matter to patients: Reduce wait times and make services more efficient.

2: Cut unnecessary red tape: Let doctors work anywhere in Canada and let pharmacists and nurses do more, such as giving shots and treating minor problems. We also need to speed up access to new drugs.

3: Investing more wisely: We need more personnel, technology, equipment and home care.

It will take time, dedication, and continuous effort to build our health system to where it needs to be. But it all starts with wanting to aim higher.

Read more and TAKE ACTION NOW by writing to your local decision-maker at CARP.ca/AimHigherForHealth

References

[1] Quote from a Survey of over 2400 CARP members.

[2] Analysis based on IQVIA MIDAS and U.S. Food and Drug Administration, European Medicines Agency and Japan Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency data, August 2022.

[3] Van Mulligen, Kiefer, Isabella Moroz, Nicholas Moroz and Chad Leaver. “Tomorrow Can’t Wait: The Value of Breakthrough Cancer Treatments for Canadians (Technical Report)”. Ottawa: The Conference Board of Canada, February 4, 2022. https://survivornet.ca/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/EMBARGOED-4-issue-briefing-tomorrow-cant-wait.pdf

[4] Mackenzie Moir and Bacchus Barua (2022). Comparing Performance of Universal Health Care Countries, 2022. Fraser Institute. https://www.fraserinstitute.org/studies/comparing-performance-of-universal-health-care-countries-2022