Bending Canada’s Healthcare Cost Curve: Watch Not What Governments Say, But What They Do
Canadians should hold off on declaring a slowdown in government healthcare spending to sustainable growth rates, says a C.D. Howe Institute report released today. In “Bending Canada’s Healthcare Cost Curve: Watch Not What Governments Say, But What They Do,” author William B.P. Robson finds that reports of slower growth in healthcare spending have been repeatedly […] Paying for the Boomers: Long-Term Care and Intergenerational Equity
Provincial governments should not expand public healthcare to cover the growing costs of long-term care (LTC), according to a new C.D. Howe Institute report. In “Paying for the Boomers: Long-Term Care and Intergenerational Equity,” authors Åke Blomqvist and Colin Busby say that such a move would put too much financial stress on future taxpayers. How To Increase Quebecers’ Access To Family Doctors: Montreal Gazette Op-ed
Published in the Montreal Gazette on June 4, 2014
By Claude Forget
Claude Forget is a former Quebec health minister. His C.D. Howe Institute study The Case of the Vanishing Physicians: How to Improve Access to Care, can be found at cdhowe.org.
For years, Quebecers and Quebec doctors have documented poor access to health-care services in the province. This situation ought to change. Quebec must reform primary care and put in place stronger incentives for better access.
In 2012 and 2013, roughly 15 per cent of Quebec patients surveyed by the Commonwealth Fund reported not having a family doctor, compared with about…
The Case of the Vanishing Quebec Physicians: How to Improve Access to Care
Despite having more family physicians per capita than many other jurisdictions, Quebec lags Ontario and Western Europe when it comes to access to primary care, according to a report from the C.D. Howe Institute. In “The Case of the Vanishing Quebec Physicians: How to Improve Access to Care,” author Claude E. Forget, former Quebec Minister […] L’affaire des médecins disparus du Québec : comment améliorer l’accès aux soins
En dépit du fait que la province compte plus de médecins de famille par tête que bien d’autres endroits, le Québec accuse du retard par rapport à l’Ontario et à l’Europe occidentale en ce qui concerne l’accès aux soins primaires, révèle un rapport de l’Institut C.D. Howe. Dans « L’affaire des médecins disparus du Québec […] Capturing Value from Health Technologies in Lean Times
In budget-constrained times, adopting new drugs or medical technology is a high-stakes challenge that requires a comprehensive, balanced approach, according to a report released today by the C.D. Howe Institute. In “Capturing Value from Health Technologies in Lean Times,” authors Ake Blomqvist, Colin Busby and Don Husereau argue healthcare policymakers should make greater use of […] Accountability and Access to Medical Care: Lessons from the Use of Capitation Payments in Ontario
Ontario healthcare reforms have made headway in improving access to primary care by implementing the “capitation” model where doctors are paid mainly for a roster of patients rather than fee-for-service – but too many of patients are still using “outside” doctors, according to a report from the C.D. Howe Institute. In “Accountability and Access to […] How Canadians can pay for long-term care: Ottawa Citizen Op-Ed
Published in the Ottawa Citizen on November 13, 2013
By Colin Busby
With a bulge of baby boomers approaching retirement, many Canadians are unprepared for the extra costs of health care in life’s later years. Our public health-care system does not cover most long-term care costs and Canadians are, for the most part, not saving for them. Forward-looking reforms should encourage that more money be put aside for tomorrow’s costs, and that government funds support patient preferences for location of care.
The system of public health insurance in Canada mainly covers hospital and physician costs, but with respect to other forms of health care — such as drugs, long-term care, dental care — private insurance or…
Paying Hospital-Based Doctors: Fee for Whose Service?
Specialist physicians should be paid by the hospitals where they carry out their procedures, rather than by provincial insurance plans as they are now, according to a report released today by the C.D. Howe Institute. In “Paying Hospital-Based Doctors: Fee for Whose Service?” authors Ake Blomqvist and Colin Busby argue hospitals could then manage their […] Moving Ontario hospitals into the 21st century: Waterloo Record Op-Ed
Published in the Waterloo Record on June 25th, 2013
By Jason Sutherland
When it comes to the way Ontario funds its hospitals, it is only now moving beyond the 8-track era.
The government is modifying its outdated payment systems to try and change the same old tune that has played for decades: long wait lists, bed blockers and cancelled surgeries.
Ontario pays for most of its hospital care using the same global budget “lump sum” approach it has used since the late 1960s. Meanwhile, the rest of the industrialized world has spent the last 30 years moving to funding models that pay hospitals based on the types and quantities of patients they treat.
At the same time as these kinds of long overdue…
Ontario hospitals: Time to move into the 21st century – Globe and Mail Op-Ed
Published in the Globe and Mail on June 20, 2013
By Jason Sutherland and Erik Hellsten
When it comes to the way we fund our hospitals, Ontario is only now moving beyond the 8-track era. The government is modifying its outdated payment systems to try and change the same old tune that has played for decades: long wait lists, bed blockers and cancelled surgeries.
Ontario pays for most of its hospital care using the same global budget “lump sum” approach it has used since the late 1960s. Meanwhile, the rest of the industrialized world has spent the last thirty years moving to funding models that pay hospitals based on the types and quantities of patients they treat. Forward-thinking countries are already shifting…
Rethinking Pharmacare in Canada
Canada’s provincial pharmacare systems have flaws not found in other developed countries that could be addressed by integrating prescription drug coverage into the broader healthcare system, according to a report released today by the C.D. Howe Institute. In “Rethinking Pharmacare in Canada,” authors Steven Morgan, Jamie Daw and Michael Law find that integrating pharmaceuticals into […]