Canadians spent $2.1 billion on necessary medical care last year

[Anonymous]

Our poor health care system is neither free nor universal. It will bankrupt provincial governments while delivering inadequate care. We must immediately reform it.



Study: $2.1B lost waiting for surgery



Canadians were hit hard in the wallet waiting for necessary medical care last year.



According to a new study by the Fraser Institute, patients were dinged a total of $2.1 billion in lost wages while waiting for surgery and medical treatment.



The more than 1 million people who waited for treatment in 2018 each lost



$1,924 on average due to lost wages and reduced productivity, according to the Waiting your Turn study.



"Waiting for medically necessary treatment remains a hallmark of the Canadian healthcare system, and in addition to increased pain and suffering — and potentially worse medical outcomes — these long waits also cost canadians time at work and with family and friends," said Bacchus Barua, associate director of health policy studies at the Fraser Institute.



The $2.1 billion in lost wages jumps to $6.3 billion, or $5,860 per patient, when factoring the value of time to include evenings and weekends.



Canadian physicians reported a median wait time from an appointment with a specialist to treatment of 11 weeks, three weeks longer than what is clinically acceptable.

[Anonymous]

Our poor health care system is neither free nor universal. It will bankrupt provincial governments while delivering inadequate care. We must immediately reform it.



Study: $2.1B lost waiting for surgery



Canadians were hit hard in the wallet waiting for necessary medical care last year.



According to a new study by the Fraser Institute, patients were dinged a total of $2.1 billion in lost wages while waiting for surgery and medical treatment.



The more than 1 million people who waited for treatment in 2018 each lost



$1,924 on average due to lost wages and reduced productivity, according to the Waiting your Turn study.



"Waiting for medically necessary treatment remains a hallmark of the Canadian healthcare system, and in addition to increased pain and suffering — and potentially worse medical outcomes — these long waits also cost canadians time at work and with family and friends," said Bacchus Barua, associate director of health policy studies at the Fraser Institute.



The $2.1 billion in lost wages jumps to $6.3 billion, or $5,860 per patient, when factoring the value of time to include evenings and weekends.



Canadian physicians reported a median wait time from an appointment with a specialist to treatment of 11 weeks, three weeks longer than what is clinically acceptable.

That is disheartening Seoul..



Provinces spend so much on health care to the point where this not enough money left over for infrastructure..



And yet more and more necessary services are delisted while costs to taxpayers for an inadequate health care system continue to rise.

[JOE]

....and there's still no universal healthcare?



From every source I've read, the USA spends more on healthcare than every other nation in the entire world.



This was the case before Obamacare & after it was implemented.



https://article.images.consumerreports.org/prod/content/dam/cro/news_articles/health/CRO_Health_Country_Healthcare_Spending_09-14">



Why can't the USA get its healthcare costs in line with other wealthy industrial nations which have universal healthcare?

[Anonymous]

JOE, we don't need two threads about rising costs of health care across North America

[Anonymous]

And always more out of pocket expenses on top of what we pay through taxes.



Cost of public health care for Canadian families soared by 70% over two decades: report



A new report pegs the cost of public health care at nearly $13,000 a year for the average Canadian family. The Fraser Institute says those costs have skyrocketed over the past two decades. Abigail Bimman takes a look at why.



The average Canadian family is expected to pay $12,935 for public health care through taxes this year – and that's nearly 70 per cent higher than when the data was first made available in 1997.



This according to a new report from the Fraser Institute, which also pegs the average health care cost for single Canadians at $4,640, more than double what it was two decades ago.

https://globalnews.ca/news/4364344/cost-health-care-canadian-families/">https://globalnews.ca/news/4364344/cost ... -families/">https://globalnews.ca/news/4364344/cost-health-care-canadian-families/

[Anonymous]

Some facts about this country's crappy, but expensive health care system.

1. Doctors are self-employed, not government employees



Canada has a publicly funded healthcare system, but the vast majority of doctors do not work for the government. A patient is free to choose which doctor they wish to visit, and they are entitled to essential physician health services without charge. Doctors are self-employed, which means they can determine their own hours and work location, and they are responsible for paying their employees, for office space and other overhead expenses. Doctors earn money by billing their provincial government for the services they provide to patients.



The Canadian health system is often referred to as "socialized" medicine, but it is actually a mix of private providers billing governments for publicly funded services.



2. Canada has 15 different healthcare systems



People often refer to the "Canadian healthcare system," when in reality, it has distinct health systems for each of the provinces and territories. The Canada Health Act outlines the basic tenets for healthcare to be universal and accessible for essential physician and hospital health services across the country. However, the details of how each system operates, including what is covered and how, is determined provincially. In addition, the federal government has responsibility for Aboriginal and Veteran healthcare.



Add it together, and Canada has a whopping 15 unique healthcare systems. On the plus, this means provinces can tailor health services to the particular needs of their residents; the downside is that coordinating health reforms across the country remains a significant challenge.



3. Funded healthcare services are not provided equally across the country



The Canada Health Act guarantees that essential physician and hospital services are paid for by the government, but there is variation across provinces for what is considered an "essential health service" — and even who delivers the care or where care is delivered.



For example, Quebec's publicly funded system includes fertility treatments, while most other provinces do not. Some provinces, including British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec, pay for births delivered by licensed midwives, while several provinces and territories do not. Eligible funded therapies for autism vary widely across the country. Abortion services are not equally accessible across the country.



The Canada Health Act does not cover prescription drugs, home care or long-term care, and as a result, there are widely different approaches for these services in each province.



4. User fees charged to patients are not permitted



Canadians cannot be charged a "user fee" when a physician provides an insured service (something already covered by the publicly funded health system). But some physicians get around the letter of the law by charging "annual fees" as part of a comprehensive package of services they offer their patients. Such charges are completely optional and can only be for non-essential health options.



In some provinces, doctors may charge a small fee to the patient for missed appointments, for doctor's notes and for prescription refills done over the phone — all items for which a doctor receives no payment from the province.



5. Canada does not truly have a "single payer" system meaning a significant portion of Canadian healthcare comes from both public and private financing



Canada has extensive public financing for essential physician services and hospital care — among the highest rates in the world. But most Canadians have to pay for eye and dental care out-of-pocket, and more than 60% of prescription medications are paid for privately in Canada.



Canada is the only country with a universal healthcare system that does not include prescription drugs. This means that Canadians still pay for approximately 30% of their healthcare directly or via private insurance with only 70% of health costs paid for publicly. In fact, Canadians are as likely to hold private health insurance as Americans.

https://evidencenetwork.ca/five-things-most-people-get-wrong-about-canadas-healthcare-system/">https://evidencenetwork.ca/five-things- ... re-system/">https://evidencenetwork.ca/five-things-most-people-get-wrong-about-canadas-healthcare-system/

[Anonymous]

Saskatchewan gets better bang for our health care buck than most povinces, but health care is still approaching forty per cent of our provincial budget.



I don't know what is going to happen in the next decade or so as the population ages and costs continue to increase. Longer waits for necessary procedures, and more services delisted(more privatized health care) I guess.

[Gaon]

Our poor health care system is neither free nor universal. It will bankrupt provincial governments while delivering inadequate care. We must immediately reform it.



Study: $2.1B lost waiting for surgery



Canadians were hit hard in the wallet waiting for necessary medical care last year.



According to a new study by the Fraser Institute, patients were dinged a total of $2.1 billion in lost wages while waiting for surgery and medical treatment.



The more than 1 million people who waited for treatment in 2018 each lost



$1,924 on average due to lost wages and reduced productivity, according to the Waiting your Turn study.



"Waiting for medically necessary treatment remains a hallmark of the Canadian healthcare system, and in  addition to increased pain and suffering — and potentially worse medical outcomes — these long waits also cost canadians time at work and with family and friends," said Bacchus Barua, associate director of health policy studies at the Fraser Institute.



The $2.1 billion in lost wages jumps to $6.3 billion, or $5,860 per patient, when factoring the value of time to include evenings and weekends.



Canadian physicians reported a median wait time from an appointment with a specialist to treatment of 11 weeks, three weeks longer than what is clinically acceptable.

We are not satisfied with the poor health care quality in Canada. We have extended medical through our jobs that covers a portion of dental, medical devices, ambulance costs, chiropractic services, massages and eighty per cent of prescription drugs. But, emergency waits can be 24 hours, patients can die waiting for required procedures and you can't even buy insurance for expensive medically necessary procedures like a cat scan.

[Bricktop]

Move to Australia.

[Gaon]

Move to Australia.

We have touched on it before, but I'd like to know more about Australian health care.

[Anonymous]

Move to Australia.

We have touched on it before, but I'd like to know more about Australian health care.

So, would I Gaon.