Canadians say rising health costs unsustainable

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Canadians say rising health costs unsustainable

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CTV.ca News Staff

Date: Monday Mar. 8, 2010 6:55 PM ET

The majority of Canadians feel that the soaring costs of health care in Canada will hamper the ability of governments to provide other services, such as education and pension benefits, a new poll finds.

The survey, conducted for the Canadian Medical Association by Ipsos Reid, found 59 per cent of Canadians agree that governments will not be able to continue to afford the current health care system while continuing to provide other services.

When pressed as to how the sustainability crunch should be addressed, 91 per cent said making the health system more efficient was the best way to slow growing costs.

Yet, only 35 per cent said they were either very or somewhat confident in the ability of governments and administrators to find efficiencies in the system.

Dr. Anne Doig, president of the Canadian Medical Association, said it's clear the solution to the growing crisis is not an easy one.

"Canadians recognize that, while important, finding efficiencies is not a panacea for the problem of skyrocketing health care costs," Doig said in news release announcing the survey findings.

"Our system continues to provide more care and more services to more Canadians with more health care needs. Efficiencies can only offset growing demand so much."

As for other ways to trim costs, 66 per cent of survey respondents said a system of rewards and penalties to encourage healthy living could help slow down growing health costs. Yet, less than half (47 per cent) were confident such a system would keep people healthier and out of the health care system.

Many also said they would be willing to pay more taxes to help fix the system. Half of respondents said they would spend 10 per cent more in taxes if they knew all of the money would go to health care.

But only one in three (35 per cent) believed it a "good idea" to tax Canadians based on how much health care a person has required over the year, up to a maximum amount.

Respondents also showed some interest in a user-pay system. Nearly half (46 per cent) said "patients should be responsible for paying a portion of the cost of the health care they receive."

As for other innovative ideas to pay for rising health care costs, seven in 10 said they supported a contribution-based "Canada Health Plan" to set aside finances for health care, the same way the Canada Pension Plan works for people who want to retire.

And 65 per cent believed it a "good idea" to develop a Registered Health Savings Plan, similar to RRSPs (Registered Retirement Saving Plans), to allow Canadians to save money on a tax-free basis to pay for health services or prescription drugs not included in the public health plan coverage.

"Canadians see that health spending is unsustainable and they are ready to look at all solutions to protect our system of universal health care," said Doig.

"To support that effort, the CMA has launched a multi-year effort to develop a health care system that is efficient, modern and sustainable that puts improving quality for patients at its heart and must put patient needs ahead of all other considerations."

The online poll contacted a national sample of more than 2,000 Canadians between Feb. 8 and Feb. 15, 2010. Results are considered accurate to within a margin of error of +/-2.2 percentage points.

Comments are now closed for this story

KJ in Kingston Ontario
said

A "Canada Health Plan" to set aside finances for health care, the same way the Canada Pension Plan works for people who WANT to retire....Did I miss something here -- people now have a CHOICE about getting too old to work any longer....? Everyone must eventually retire. It isn't an option. Likewise medical services aren't all that optional either, if one wants to stay alive. The solution to runaway health costs is to quit wasting immense sums money on the last few months of life for many hopeless patients -- a process that often makes dying a far worse experience than it nature intended. It should be perfectly acceptable AND LEGAL to forgo the heroics and accept the fact that we don't live forever. Not everything that can be done should be done.

Jim
said

Remember who the CMA represents... the doctors. They simply want a private system like the system they have in the states. Its bankrupting the country and making doctors and pharma boatloads of money. Here's an idea: How about we publish what the doctors billing rates are. I'm interested to know what my doctor makes for my 60 second "Here's some antibiotics" appointments. Someone needs to take on the doctors union (the CMA)!! Don't be afraid, publish the numbers!! The CMA's propaganda won't stand up to the numbers.

Joe
said

Universal Health Care : That is the mark of a civilized society. When we call the police or the fire department for an emergency, they do not ask us if we have insurance, they just respond to each call as best they can. And after they put out the fire or catch the bad guy who robbed your house�they don�t send you a bill. � so should it be for all basic human rights; the system in the U.S. is ridiculous. However all should contribute to supporting our system. That means all citizens of Canada. It is too big a burden for hard working tax paying citizens to pay for those who are exempt from taxation for whatever reason. As well, if we could find some way to FINE the drug addicts and alcoholics who crowd the emergency room every Friday and Saturday night with their nonsense.

Laurie
said

Well, fact is, regardless of the system, costs are going to increase because of the aging population. I don't agree with going totally private, and following the United States into the Abyss. The Americans have one of the most expensive health care systems in the world, and still they have millions of citizens without any coverage. I think that part of the answer in Canada lies with removing duplication of services, top-heavy bureacracy, educating the public in prevention and nutrition, and charging user fees for non-essential visits to doctors offices. Mainstreaming the bureacracy/administration services would save millions of dollars.Finally, I believe that too much reliance is placed on technology, in modern medicine. Doctors should diagnose without an over-dependence on tests and technology. Modern technology is very expensive and draining on the system. Surely, there could be less reliance on it, and less use of medical tests in non life threatening circumstances.

Kris D.
said

Thanks, Prof. Pye Chart, I hear you but I'm still not convinced that mixing profit-driven healthcare (i.e. private) will solve our cost problems. I think that will only increase costs and we�d start seeing denial of care to certain people based on the fact that it would eat into the profits of these private companies. Perhaps encouraging a more business-like approach into our public system will help make it more efficient. Treat us taxpayers as the �shareholders� and possibly reward efficiencies. I�m really not sure how to address this but I do get very nervous about allowing profit-driven corporate fat cats into our system. Thanks for your reply, it�s nice to discuss these things with someone in a civil manner. :-)

CYL
said

This issue is a strong sore point for me. Health care will deteriorate if we keep it 'free' for those who did not pay taxes here for a period of time, which is the case for a lot of people whom this 'free' healthcare is/was/will be given to. It is happening right now. Another issue is shortage of doctors & nurses. I myself have to wait months to see specialists, probably because of those who are receiving 'free' healthcare. We should also be encouraging more early age natureopathic medicine, which may prolong the current healthcare issues.

NOTBUYINGIT
said

Well, leave it to CTV to introduce a "credible" poll that has more spins to it than Trudeau's famous pirouette, to open the door for the Harper Government to implement draconian measures in cutting Canadian health care while opening the door to American "health care" profit mongers. When? The issue of health care can be resolved with daring vision for the future, rather that "cut'...a five year old can cut services...remember...the Harper gov. is trying to equate small government with good government. Which is a lie. The question should always be what is "better" government...regardless if it costs more or cost less.

JMB
said

The thought that a taxpayer feels entitled to dictate the lifestyle of others in order to reduce health care costs, is ludicrous. The person receiving services has also paid taxes into the system and should be entitled to receive those services regardless of lifestyle. If we lose this mindset, then we might as well create an American style health care system where it's every man for himself. The moment we lose our compassion for each other is the moment we STOP being CANADIAN.

Dr. M
said

@Prof Pye ChartActually Prof, it's you who hasn't been paying attention. The majority of Americans do in fact want a change to their system, but many reject the current bills because they lack a public option. They've also been woefully misled by Republicans, working for large insurance companies, about "death panels" that will kill grandma if she gets sick. In fact, the option to discuss end of life care already exists in most insurance company contracts, and that language was boilerplate adopted into the proposed health care legislation, which Republicans then claimed meant death panels. Remember the Tea Party meetings? Remember the nonsense about "keep your government hands off my medicare?" All of that comes out of Republican opposition to change in the system, all of it supported by huge campaign donations to Republicans by insurance companies. Remember the meeting Obama had with Republicans, asking for their input? He got nothing but stall tactics. The Republicans have no ideas. They are intellectually bankrupt. Obama could flex his muscle and have a vote..oh, wait, in fact he just called for an up and down vote, didn''t he? He's been waiting to try to get bipartisan support, but he's slowly learning that the Republicans will stall any legislation hoping to use failure as leverage in the upcoming elections. The Republicans will prevent any real change if it means that Obama's presidency looks like it might succeed, even if that means wrecking America in the process. It's only your own ideological bias that prevents you from understanding what has become blatantly obvious, Prof. Stop watching FOX news, and get a grip on what's really going on.

Bruce McLean
said

We are all so concerned now about the aging of our population and the unsustainability of our health care system, pension plans, education systems, etc. We should have thought of this before beginning the systematic slaughter of 3 million babies since 1968 through abortion. Children are our future and we have squandered that future.

David sawkiw[saskatchewan farmer]
said

Fellow Canadians,, have no fear, as long as our socialist system keeps us above the level that of the evil right wing republics like the rotten Americans ,,we can hold our heads high and sneer at them.I know it certainly makes me feel good to call them and their system down !! What does it matter if you are on death row ,waiting on a list that never ends, as long as you THINK you are better off than the stupid yankees??I'm betting most Canadians who die while on the list are MUCH happier than those broke Americans who have all tht WORRY about how they are going to pay the bill.I guess it is better to be a DEAD canadian than a broke american,,, Owe Canada, or home and bankrupt land..........

Accountable Healthcare
said

Our experience with elderly parents and aunts and uncles is that they feel that they do little to prevent health problem but feel they are entitled to every drug and surgery, Our parents are both obese, but rather than lose weight, they continue to overeat and refuse to exercise. My father had major heart surgery 7 years ago. He was told to change his diet and start walking. He has done neither, yet he wants his surgeon to do another heart surgery. He had a knee replacement done, but rather than walking he still sits in front of a tv 24/7. Now he wants the other knee done. My mom is 200 lb overweight and was so glad when the doctor changed stomach medicine so that now she can eat whatever she wants again. They have done little to improve or prevent sickness and just assume that doctors should prescribe whatever drug or surgery they need. I do not want my parents to suffer but they and many like them are destroying our ability to deliver adequate health care in the future. How do we make people accountable for themselves?

Bradley Armstrong
said

I agree with Larry Campbell (a former police officer and Vancouver's mayor) when he said "I would legalize this" (marijuana) "and tax the living hell out of it, And I would ensure that every single dollar, every dollar of that tax went into the health care system."Marijuana is illegal here in Canada but still 16% of Canadians admit to smoking it, making Canada the biggest population of marijuana smokers. Even Amsterdam where cannabis is legal, there are less marijuana users. So Canadians are going to use marijuana weather it is illegal or not. Why don't we stop waiting money on sending people to jail for it and instead, start taxing it and controlling it like tobacco?Canada waists over 400 000 000 on cannabis prohibition alone. Politician need to stop being afraid of the "M" and "L" word and do what is right for our country.

Alex
said

42 cents of every dollar in BC spent on healthcare. How powerful do you thing the people are who want to keep the status quo? Change as we all know disrupts the status quo. So do they with their influence have any incentive? Not likely. Ask yourselves, who are these people and should they have a say in the matter of reform? I think not, biased, is a word that comes to mind. We need three kind of people involved in hleping propose to us the voters a solution. We need accountants to figure out where every last penny is being spent and how. We need work process organizational analysts to tell us how it's all stiched together and to help us achieve transparency. And third we need experts from those systems that rank top in the world which will adhere to our values as Canadians to advise us on upgrading our own system. Once we get their recommendations, we should all vote in referendum for those reforms needed to upgrade our system.

bobby
said

If Canadians want to spend their hard earned money on private health insurance shouldn't they be allowed They spend their money on cigerettes and alcohol without much government interference.

Spike
said

Who is the mental giant who thought this poll may be useful..It is and was obvious there is a problem in health care funding

Dr. M
said

@Jim in North SaanichJim, you ask for someone to give you an example of a service that the government can provide more cheaply than the private sector. How about fire fighting? Fighting fires used to be private in England, before the Great Fire of London in 1660. When that happened, private companies stood back and watched houses insured by other companies burn to the ground. The result was that the fire spread, and London was destroyed. It was shortly after that that the king made fire fighting a public service, and it's been that way around the world since. As for health care, the Americans pay 9500 per year per person, while we pay approximately half that. The French pay less, as do the English, the Japanese, the Swiss, the Swedes...the list goes on. And all of those systems have public options, and all provide better care cheaper than the American system. Are those enough examples for you? Because if not, I can provide more. Try taking a course in Economics, Jim, and learn what "economies of scale" means. But a private option for wealthier people maynot be a bad idea either, provided that we can ensure that the public system isn't bled of resources. Agai8n, the Frenchdo this, and it works well for them. Those "dreaers" you sneer at have actually made the best system in the world utilizing the public and private options.

zonker
said

Someone should look into the costs of equipment prices from Health Care companies that are sold to our Hospitals at highly inflated prices.

Charles Regina
said

You guys are hilarious with your 21st century attitudes! United; anything is possible. I have simple yet, "tough to implement" solutions;0) Revamp the fundamentals of our health system to a person per person basis; draw the line in the sand, to identify if you have a real health problem, or a "temporary disorder". Heck, it'd be consequential, yet interesting to imagine if our bank accounts were linked to our health files...That way the doc could say; "I'm sorry Joe...i told you last year that if you ate over 100cheeseburgers this year that you'd have to pay the full cost of the health insurance to cover those pills!"1) Lower the power corporations are given. Stop allowing them to get off so easy, if at all.2) Tax Junk Food: Using a simple math formula, you can determine what is "junk food" by measuring the calorie:fat ratio. Thus junk food prices go up, deterring customers from it. Companies will try cheating this of course, but it's a start....This money would go to the following;-Life/Health Insurance-Input prices (to lower the output)With governement incentives perhaps giving some sort of credit to organic growers, we could really get this going fast. 3) Legalize & tax marijuana and/or marijuana licenses: Billion dollar industry just waiting to be exploited... Ban paper from tree production, and start manufacturing hemp paper again. More tree's, more oxygen in the air = cleaner world. Also, this opens up more doors for the hemp clothing industry. All of this is where the governement would get more money from; instead of us having to pay more, "direct" taxes. It is moronic to ignore our options. We can't all get what we want but at least we can try.

James
said

To say that our health care is unsustainable is a conservative opinion. To use the media, owned by the conservatives is misrepresentative. We could call the Canadian forces unsustainable, but you never hear this tax funded organization used in this context.Just put it to the vote if you dare.

L
said

Higher taxes for everyone is not the solution. Many of us hardly ever use the medical system, why should we pay for those who go to the doctor for every sniffle? I think the solution is easy, everyone gets 1-2 visits per year for free, every additional visit is a nominal fee, such as $10 per visit, those with recurring medical problems (ie. cancer, diabetes etc) who require more care get additional visits for free with a doctors note indicating their condition, those with temporary need for more care (ie. pregnant people, those with a surgery from an accident) also get a free pass for those additional visits during that time, again with the proper doctors note attached. Easy solution to the abuse by patients of the system. Also, unless you can prove you have lived/worked in Canada or at least paid Canadian taxes in the last tax year, you don't get your free visits, you have to pay the fees from the start, and pay at least half of the cost of any major treatments. It would certainly prevent the abuse by those that don't really need to go to a doctor, or those canadians of convenience, but isn't such a high fee for those that aren't sure but think they need to be checked out or that would prevent lower income people from going.

charronne
said

A recent study of the medical system in the US concluded that fully HALF their medical budget is is wasted; sloppy bookkeeping accounted for the largest portion of this amount - on incorrect billing - a huge sum - with bills being paid automatically with no checking for accuracy, billing for services and supplies not done or used, over a billion dollars for such items. A tooth brush willed out at $1,000.00, over $40 per pill dispensed, multiple IV bags paid for per patient when only 1 may have been used, disposable gloves billed out at $10 a pair. Does anyone really believe it would be all that different in Canada? Before any drastic measures taken here, lets have a forensic analysis of our health care billing and see what turns up.

Prof. Pye Chartt
said

@ Kris D.: I've never suggested, Kris, that Canada adopt the traditional American healthcare model. It's a failure. What I have always advocated is that Canadians dispense with their complacency, false superiority, and misplaced fear, and open their minds to what stands as the only answer: private-sector involvement. A blend of public-sector and private-sector healthcare is the system that will best serve and sustain Canada, and raise it from its current (pathetic) international ranking of 30th (only 7 spots ahead of the "awful" American system). To believe otherwise, given the erosive (corrosive) facts, is to be deluded. Our current public system is going down, slowly but surely. Ignoring this reality will solidify our peril. Hopefully this clears it all up for you. Thanks.

Johnnybegood
said

I almost never go to the doctors and now that I want to do a physical I have to find a doctor cause clinics won't take me in. I'm healthy but just in case I wanna get checked. I can't find a doctor, they all refuse me. If I don't get the services I pay taxes for, the governement should lower my tax rate cause I barely used the medical system in my lifetime!!!

Joe Montreal
said

Doctor visits for a pimple on your bum cheek are driving up costs. The doctors just keep milking the taxpayer with a never-ending assembly line of billing, bllling and more billing! I went to a dermatologist at the Santa Cabrini hospital who overbooks her patients on a daily basis, sitting ih her waiting room for over 3 hours past their initial appointment time. You can be sure she's abusing the system by over booking and billing the Canadian taxpayer.

Prof. Pye Chartt
said

@ Dr. M: Nice to see you acknowledge that the "answer" rests with public-private options. (Most Canadians still have their head buried in the sand.) Regarding the healthcare situation in America, the typical anti-right-wing blame you place on Republicans clearly exhibits a lack of information and, therefore, misguided partisan tact. The fact of the matter is that the Obama Administration, despite control of House & Senate, has utterly failed, on its very own, to put forth the necessary reform. This fact is driving common-sense Democrats crazy, who wish that Obama would grow a pair and get the job done by flexing some majority muscle. (Even Hollywood liberals are all over this.) Part of the problem, of course, is that the American people themselves do NOT adequately support public healthcare reform in the manner, and of the type, being stubbornly hammered at. To say that professional Republicans (elected politicians) are the only roadblock to healthcare utopia is to display an ignorance for the true reluctance of Americans of both partisan stripes. You are, evidently, not paying close attention to the battle.

Thinking
said

An online poll that included 2000 anonymous users does not reflect a general Candian thought on the topic. The only way I would accept poll results is if they included at least 20 million Canadians and they were identified as Canadians first. Otherwise it is simply another news article trying to make you think it could be valid. It isn't valid and we really need to stop reacting to these ridiculous polls.

Doug # BC
said

Well,to "a guy in ottawa",who thinks the blame for this is a Conservative fault,you should know that health care is a provincial matter.You should also know that funding has been increasin every year,to the point that BC now spends 42 cents of every dollar they spend,on health care.And you should also know that it was LIBERAL,Paul Martin,who slashed tranfer payments to the provinces,and thus downloaded the problem on to them. All that aside,.there are a lot of reasons for health care becoming more expensive.Not the least of it is an older population.Then,there is fact that our system,designed five decades ago, never imagined the technology we have now.In those days we didn't routinely replace body organs and joints.We dind' have the high priced drugs and tehcnolgy that we have today.If your heart failed,you died.If your knees or hips gave out,you stayed home.Etc,etc.And finally,no one in the health care system is accountable.They cannot even tell you how much any particular operation costs.Then,to add insult to injury,they demand thast only unionized,public sector employees be leagally allowed to perorm health care services. No,my friends.The USA system is NOT the way we want to go.But,there are other health cares systems around the world that provide far better results at a cost similar to what we are paying now.The problem I see,is any time any leader wants ot discuss changes,all the fear mongers go into overdrive with accusations that they want an American style system for Canada,which is blatantly untrue. The system is unsustainable,but it's mainly up to provinces to fix.Throwing more money at it only encourages abuse,and delays the changes we will eventually have to make.It's "efficiency" we need,not exclusion or user fees.

Kris D.
said

Perhaps Prof. Pye Chartt can point to a for-profit health-care system somewhere in the world that is better than ours. And by better, I mean one that costs less, covers everyone, people live longer and the population is healthier. You will not find one. Instead of proposing that we move towards American-style healthcare, Prof. Pye Chartt, we should be looking at strengthening ours by building on it. I don�t think most Canadians are very interested in mimicking a system that is completely broken, completely unsustainable and one that denies care to millions.

Dan
said

If our health system didn't have people that use other people to carry the work load and slack off at every chance they get,then it would be more effecient thus cheaper. Ive spent 1/2 my life in the hospital and the worst thing to happen to health care was a spoiled union worker.

JPC in SK
said

Of course it isn't when everyone wants to live forever and no one wants to pay...we need more private coverage to ease the pressure...and a smaller human population in Canada...

Metro
said

Sod, have we ever become a nation of whiners:"Don't tax meeeee!" "I want more moneeeey!" "It's all brooooken! *sob* *weep*"Let me state for the record that if it means good schools, full health care coverage, and a decent pension for every citizen, I'll happily up my taxes, okay?You gatta give to get. And I see a lot of whingers commenting here who've forgotten that fact.Oh, and for the kneejerk anti-taxers: It works in the Scandinavian countries. And if we ignore the Sarah Palin-loving segment of Canada (as they rightly deserve) then it can work here too.

wpeters1
said

"Many also said they would be willing to pay more taxes to help fix the system. Half of respondents said they would spend 10 per cent more in taxes if they knew all of the money would go to health care"Right.. this has got to be one of the biggest load of BS I have ever read.What about the costs of the large medical corporations on our system, what about doctors earning > $400k / year what about all the hospital management earning >$150k / year. Those are the costs that need to be trims, are we all not absolutely sick to the core of government taking more and more taxes from us and giving it to the already wealthy healthcare professionals.

Shelley
said

Maybe the whole problem with our health care system is that doctors charge for things that they don't need to charge for. When I have tests done, if they come back negative, my doctor won't tell me this until I come in for an appointment, so that she can bill OHIP again for another appointment. Why not just have the office assistant call and say all results were negative. If I need an ongoing prescription renewed, why can't I just call my doctor and have them renew it, without having to go in for an appointment? Because then they can't bill OHIP again for another appointment. The system is flawed and abuse is rampant. It takes more time for everyone involved, and if a simple phone call were allowed in many situations, it would clear up doctor's time to see patients who really need to be seen, save the patient time wasted for no news, and cost the system a lot less. We need health care reform, that's all.

Other problems to be addressed
said

One thing that should be done is find a way to regulate grocery prices. It costs a lot more to buy healthy food then it is to buy junk food. In a country where a lot of people are unemployed or underemployed, eating healthy is not always an option. Especially when your options are spend $200 and eat healthy for a week or a week and a half, or spend $200 and eat unhealthy for two and a half to three weeks. My wife and I started eating healthier last year and we spend and extra $200 a month to buy the same amount of food we used to buy when eating less healthy. Some people also don't have the time to prepare meals, or they don't know how to manage their time, or how to prioritize things that have to be done. I am all for getting rid of junk food and processed food, but even then people who grow and raise food have to stop injecting livestock with steroids and spraying fruit and vegetables with chemicals.

Mary
said

Every Canadian should pay SOMETHING towards health care. A percentage user fee should be based on income, regardless of the source of that income, including people on social assistance, etc. Why is it that high income earners have to shoulder the health-care costs when all Canadians are entitled to equal health care?

Catwoman 37
said

They say you are what you eat!We should have a reward system for people who want to eat healthy organic or nutritious foods.The way I see it is , if you eat nutritious foods, and get excercise more often, watch your blood pressure, and go to the doctors once or twice a year for a check up, people would be healthier.

Stephanie
said

Here come the gestapo remarks where government spies on your every move to ensure you are using the system honestly; somewhat like insurance companies that will find any excuse not to pay. Our government finds deliberate ways to waste money and to keep corporate taxes the lowest in any industrial nation so the money is there but we are given excuses why it is not and most have bought into it. People target other people whose habits they themselves do not have...this looks like the same kind of set up to get people to hang themselves with: create the problem, wait for the "something HAS to be done" and then offer the solution which invariably involves taking a "right" away...and the right to good quality medical aid to EVERYONE should not be up for questioning. The reason antibiotic resistent T.B. is around is because the poor couldn't continue the treatments for whatever reasons. Having an unhealthy underclass does not benefit anyone.

Fred
said

How about a 1% "health" sales tax specifically earmarked for health care? Income tax solutions are bound to be unfair - the middle class will end up paying for everybody, rich and poor, once again. So, let's really tax EVERYBODY, on consumption, just a little bit.

vulpes
said

ummmm .... how does the thoughts of 2000 speak for an entire population .. Heath care is getting higher because people are getting sicker A LOT this can be offset by cracking down on companies that are using toxic chemicals in the products they sell to make a buck . the amount of unneeded additives in our foods, toys, health care products themselves is sickening figuratively & literally . crack down on TOXIC IMPORT products they should be made to fit OUR standards ..(china's blunder with animal products, childrens toys, health products ...etc ) try PREVENTIVE care Before BIG Problems arise ..PLEASE i implore the government to make it AFFORDABLE for people to EAT Healthy again (so many children/ teens are ill & over wieght / under nourished as a result of food costs& lack of physical involvent in schools bring back a healthy linging appraoch at schools .. the brian is only as Healthy as a BODY can let it be ) (apples should be cheaper than a bag of chips.. milk should be cheaper than a bottle of pop or rye ) and make the physicians and surgeons, Practitioners , Hospitals/ Facilities & patients be ACCOUNTABLE for costs .. how much of the health care system is being abused the contracts with pharmaceutical companies that have KNOWINGLY .. REPEATEDLY produce drugs that make patients sicker or develop a new more serious illness should be under Scrutiny.make them accountable for also adding feul to the fire make them accountable Before thier product can be released. Family Dr's need to be more informative . most patients don't know what to ask or are too nervos /intimidated to ask Questions .. especially when they are tossed around emergency Dr's because NO family Dr's are even available to many communities .. these are a few things i feel may make some differences int the long term...

Oh Sure
said

Won't be long now after these results, that the CMA (supported by the politicians) will suggest that "privatization" may be a panacea to the problem!

Mike on the Righ
said

The greatest problem is the fraud, waste and abuse in the health care system.... Even in Ontario they cannot account for 300,000 cards or so... guess who pays for that? Also having Convient Canadians that come back to get health care and not put a dime into over the years and then go back home has to be addressed

Zhimmy
said

You guys are so being taken in by the Neo right wingers and the "Private" Insurance Companies!"Taxes have gone down so that is a big reason why Health Care costs are now more disappropriate. But remember this to all you people that want to complain about the costs. I am more than happy to see it go to a private system. My spouse would literally double her income level if she was to get paid the same here as she does in the U.S! So don't complain too much my fellow Canadains. You may not very well like what will really happen.

Ted
said

The best way to rein in health costs is to control costs of drugs. Conservatives under Mulroney gave Big Pharma a sweet heart deal and punished generic drug industries. The result is higehr health costs and no R& D for Canada. Just recently I was switched from a good drug with no side effects to a new one with lots of side effects at a higher cost because the patent on the old one ran out. Thanks Conservatives,.

Millicent Wendy
said

The biggest problem with our health care system is doctors keeping old people alive forever. My own mother goes to the doctor once a week who bills the taxpayer continuously for blood test, urine test, cholesterol etc, etc, etc. It's getting out of hand - does she really need all those test all the time??? Doctors are installing state of the art pacemakers in Grandma/Grandpa Gimme gased up like the Energizer Bunny when at 80 it's time to let nature take its course without Dr. Frankenstein's interference.It's like Night of the Living Dead with zombies walking around that look like they died 10 years ago running to the local casino to spend the kid's inheritance while they drive up the cost to the taxpayers to keep them around for another 20 years when in the old days they would already have died according to Mother Nature's plan but now Doctor Frankenstein does otherwise installing pacemakers and prescribing viagra to keep the old coots going. Unreal!

Arleen Bernard
said

I agree with Doug. It is time to impliment user fees for non essential doctors/hospital visits. 3 weeks ago, I went to the ER with a CT scan that my family doctor had requested. It clearly stated that I had an appendix that was about to rupture, yet I was assessed and lumped in with the patients that had come to the ER with minor cuts & bruises. After 8 hours of waiting I was finally admitted and dthen I had to wait ANOTHER 24 hours for surgery. Great system we have!

Ted
said

Not surprised that this was sponsored by CMA, greedy doctors and Big Pharma who want Canadians to pay for private health care through the nose like Americans. The American system in fact is bankrupting America. Dictator arper will have a revolution if he tries it.

PBW
said

It would be interesting if numbers were published indicating exactly how health dollars are spent. What proportion goes to doctors? What proportion goes to those actually supplying services - nurses, technicians, cleaning and maintenance staff? What proportion goes in administration? What proportion goes into record keeping? What percentage for supplies of all sorts? I suspect that getting such a breakdown would be close to impossible, even under Freedom of Information provisions. However, as tax payers we fund the hospitals and ought to be able to have access for such a breakdown. I believe a cost/benefit analysis of every hospital would reveal that much time and money is spent on unnecessary or duplicated effort. For example, a visit to the emergency room in a Winnipeg hospital generates eight sheets of paper before the patient gets near a doctor. Why all that paper? Why aren't electronic records made? An electronic clipboard per patient linked wirelessly to a secure server would save whole forests, AND make that information available to the family doctor. But then, that would require every health board to cooperate, not to mention every province, each of which thinks its own proposed electronic record keeping system is better than any other.

Dr. M
said

Comments concerning the advisability of spending more to prevent health problems are well-founded. The cheapest disease to treat is the one that never occurs. That said, there are two drivers for health care cost increases that will not go away. The first is the fact that in every industrialized country, the population is aging, placing more burden on the system, regardless of whether peope take care of themsleves or not. Secondly, medical technology is becoming increasingly expensive. MRI machines cost millions. As technology improves, so will the cost of health care rise. This is happening in every industrialized country, regardless of health-care models. We need to investigate the best system in the world- the French. They pay an equivalent amount to Canadians, but have the best care. Theirs is a mixture of public and private options. Someone in Seattle sarcastically comments that the "utopian socialist sytem" doesn't work, but the fact is that of the ten best systems in the world, all have a public option, and all are better than the American purely private option. Lack of a public option costs Americans 150,000,000,000 a year from GDP. Prof. Pye Chart comments that the American system will be better than ours, but this is unlikely, unless they manage to pass a public option. Insurance companies, however, acting through the Republicans, are unlikely to allow this. But a system involving the entire population is best. This has to do with economies of scale, like education, fire departments, and police forces. There are some things that a public system is best for, and some things privatization is best for. For health care, a mixture may be the way to go, as it may allow for more resources, and take wealthier people out of the sytem, while provideing care for the rest of us.

Anna
said

So after that entire waste of spending tons of our hard earned tax dollars on that h1n1 scam, now they want to cut our healthcare!!!??? We the people have to take these crooks to court!!!! We will start to build a legal fund if those people continue this garbage! Do you think we will pay any less taxes if they make cuts or eliminate it together??? NO! I will not accept this bs and I know that tons of others will not either.

Jay, Ottawa
said

I believe saying that rising health costs are unsustainable is a narrow view. It would appear that the rising costs of EVERYTHING is unsustainable. Rising consumer costs with frozen, shrinking, or in the worst case, completely lost wages does not bode well for our middle class.

Michael Moore
said

Maybe you the reader should call your local MP and request a cap on insurance and pharmaceutical prices on their products and services, that is how you lower the costs of healthcare. Where is our Obama? You readers think the government runs healthcare? The government purchases healthcare off these companies! Go watch SICKO and see where Canada ranks on healtcare. Not even close to the top ten.

Steve in PEI
said

This is happening because the population is aging - there are more and more older people for every young person.Opening the immigration floodgates to trying to compel people to breed is not the answer. Neither is putting our elderly onto ice floes when they get too sick or feeble :P. The world's population needs to go down in order for our descendants to have a sustainable future, meaning that this time we're going through where a small population of young people needs to bear the burden of a huge population of elderly people is a necessary inevitability. We're just going to have to suck it up and pay what it takes. Probably we will not be able to avoid more user-pay, and ideas like RHSPs deserve to be explored.

Jim - North Saanich, BC
said

The platitudes of the Canadian Medical Association are something I listened to for years now to the point it sounds like a broken record. In my days in uniform, the motto was: "Results not Excuses". To date all I have seen is the latter. At the same time, a good deal of the problem is also political as a goodly portion of the Canadian public is still living in a Utopian socialist dream world as manifested in the Canada Health Act and somehow believing that government can deliver a better and less expensive level of service than can the private sector. I can not think of one single service that government provides that can not be delivered better and more efficiently by the private sector and that includes health care. No doubt I shall incur the wrath of the "dreamers" over that statement. Perhaps the resolution to the issue is to let both sectors compete on an even playing field albeit that means re-writing the "Act". Perhaps even better, let me be in a position where I can buy health care services of my choosing and at my own expense in Canada rather than having to head to the United States as I have done on two occasions in order to get around the inefficiencies inherent in our public health care system.There is a better way to do things and the sooner the "dreamers" and the CMA recognize that fact, the better off we'll all be.

Larry in Wpg
said

Too large a percentage of the population require medical services. We need to get people to educate themselves on what healthy living consists of - in terms of diet, exercise and informed use of supplements. The fact that so many people are on medication they will take for the rest of their lives is indicative of the fact they didn't know what to do or didn't take responsibility for themselves earlier in life. Consider smoking - despite decades of warnings, public education and laws, many people still smoke, but it is improving slowly. I think if a similar effort is made to educate people to live healthy lives, that too will change. It will, however, derail the plans of pharmaceutical giants to get everyone taking their products. They have a pretty strong lobby and a LOT of money, so.......

Doug
said

Time to impliment user fees for non essential doctors visits and . . . cut the crap about how this will hurt the poor.Too bad politicians need to grovel to immigrant groups for votes. Free and immediate health care to 265,000 new immigrants every year is a joke.

Trent
said

Just because we can doesn't mean we should. Providing surgery to an 89 year old to extend their life 6 months should not be done. A hip replacement on a 400 pound obese patient should not be done. Keeping babies alive that are brain dead should not be done.Euthanasia, abortion and death penalty should all be studied and provided as options for two reasons. One, to save our health care dollars and two, it is the cheapest and most efficient way to deal with global warming. The best way to reduce our carbon footprint is to not have one.

Ann
said

Making people pay for all health care is going to force those that are low income to go without adequate medical care. In otherwords only the rich would get medical treatment.I do however support making users who go to the doctor for every little thing that could be treated with over the counter medication and bed rest pay for their doctors/emergency room visits. I only take my children to the doctor when a cold has persisted for over 2 weeks instead of at the first sign of a sniffle. Also make people pay for missed appointments. This would reinforce the cost of a doctors visit.Why not set up a reward system for those that purchase healthy foods - ie, fruits, vegetables and whole grains. It is all I can do somedays to purchase healthy food for my family - so access to recreation facilities doesn't happen. How about making the system more efficient? How about putting the health care money towards the areas that actually help patients and not the administration staff? The frontline nurses and doctors are the priority. I fear a system like the United States where only the rich can get adequate medical services. I know that I definitely do not fall into that category and I would end up going without medical aid or a visit to the doctor.

G.
said

If I thought a tax increase for healthcare would actually assist in providing health care as opposed to just fattening doctors' wallets, I would have no problem with paying a bit more than I already do through my provincial health care tax.

Prof. Pye Chartt
said

When the Americans finally sort out their healthcare issues, and improve their system with some public-sector tweaking, their international healthcare ranking of 37 will correspondingly improve to surpass Canada's 30th position. What will we brag about then, folks?! Will we have the sense to engage in some private-sector tweaking? Or, will we continue to live in denial and childishly refer to Danny Williams as some sort of traitor? Stay tuned. Our system is on a trajectory of change, whether we like it or not. We can make it a positive one, or, ride what we have down into the gutter with our arms folded and our snobby noses held upward. Fools.

kblake in SW Ont.
said

One of the areas most responsible for the increases in the cost of health care is prescription drugs. Canada needs to negotiate a supply agreement with drug companies to supply our system with lower cost prescription drugs. As long a drug companies are given a free enterprise hand to raise the price of drugs and maximize profits the costs will continue to skyrocket. Just as our health care system contributes positively to the productivity of our nation so too will a drug benifits program where bulk purchases reduce the cost of the prescription drugs. This is the only sensable way to sustain our health care system.

a guy in ottawa
said

First of all, it's important to know how the money is being spent: According to Health Canada's Departmental Performance Review (available publicly on the website), forecasted spending on the health care system is decreasing by 14% a year for the next couple of years - The conservatives have a vision of a private/public system and are making thier case through a perception of increasing costs and inefficiencies (longer wait times, no increase in salaries to doctors). Comparably, spending on First Nations health (the largest portion of the Health Portfolio) is expected to increase by 5% every year. This issue isn't a matter of "it's broken, so let's find a new system" - it's an issue of the fact that our health care system is underfunded compared to other programs with an agenda towards a semi private system for the purposes of profit.

C Payne
said

Perhaps a system where patients, who could afford it, paid a small amount for the meals and housekeeping services you receive in hospital. This should be minimal - e.g. $2 - $5 per day. I know it is not a lot but it might help. making patients pay for missed appointments (when it is not a medical emergency) might work. We have to do this at the dentist.I also agree with the part of the article that had a reward system for being healthy. So if you don't smoke, are of normal weight, and lead a healthy lifestyle there should perhaps be an incentive. Or at least a more proactive preventative public health care system should be in place. I read somewhere of a sytem that rewarded people who bought more fresh fruit and vegetables with passes for recreation/swimming. Everyone needs to be on board to promote healthier lifestyles. I am not talking about chronic or inherited conditions that patients cannot do anything about but rather things like smoking or unhealthy diet choices which lead to illness.We difinitely need to look at some other systems (France, Japan) where there is an excellent health care system that seems accessible to everyone.

jordan
said

M. Cameron, thats absurd, immigration is a shaking policy just like multiculturalism. Why doesn't the state promote an atmosphere to have children? They don't, they just let everyone in to help support the unstable welfare state. We may as well join the EU.

Matt in the TDot
said

The solution to this problem is rather easy and hard. Easy part which is becoming a big problem. Over weight and obesity, this is not a disease it is being lazy and should be forced to pay for all medical trips, scans etc.Hard Part - Forcing people to pay for their stupid mistakes, ie Smokers who get lung Cancer should be forced to pay for all treatment. Parents who take their kids to the ER because they have a cough. If your case is not an Emergency you should be forced to pay a large sum of money say the 500 Dollar cost to open your file, do your triage, doctor fee and nurse fee seems fair.The Very Hard Part getting a leader who will make the tough calls.

Anne
said

Always raising the taxes. They will tax us out of being able to survive, period. How about more incentives to stay healthy. Allow us to claim gym/physical activity membership dues, do something about the people who think they need to see a doctor for a sniffle. Put every cent of tax collected from tobacco and alcohol sales directly into the health care system....that in itself would provide a lot of funding. And, in the instance of tobacco tax, would directly tax users for future health care costs.

Raymond
said

Abuse of system.Time for user fees.

rick quinte west
said

Here we go, a Republican policy making its way to Canada. Health care for the rich only.

seattle steve
said

What socialized medicine isn't the global utopia? You mean govt involvement ion everything does work?

Aaron
said

For the people that stated that we should pay per use either they are wealthy or have never had to get CT, MRI's, special scans using nuclear medicine, or even treatments for cancer. Don't forget even having surgery for complex medical issues that are not even brought on by no fault of your own eg accidents.

Marko
said

I don't care if this is popular but it is the truth! Our entire system is heading for bust until somebody adresses the difficult issues. How long does government want to ignore the fact that everybody must pay. It is time right now to revisit agreements made hundreds of years ago. Until all Canadians are treated EQUALLY we might as well accept tax increases to cover the entire population.

M. Cameron
said

I think this could be easily offset, if Canada had a larger population, in proportion to other countries of similar geographic and economic size. A larger population to tax could relieve the financial strain on the healthcare system as well as the taxpayer. For now, our population growth needs to rely on the world's highest immigration rate, until our birth rate catches up.