Posted on 10/27/2015 8:00:41 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
While many Canadians proudly boast about our country’s "free" health care, a new study has broken down exactly how much money in many tax dollars go into the system each year.
According to a new report by the right-leaning Fraser Institute, the average Canadian family will contribute $11,735 in taxes for public health insurance in 2015.
Many Canadians underestimate the cost of health care for a number of reasons, says study co-author Bacchus Barua, a senior economist with the Fraser Institute’s Centre for Health Policy Studies.
First, people may wrongly assume health care is free because they are not charged directly when they visit the hospital or see a doctor.
“Unlike many other universal health care countries, there is absolutely no form of deductibles or co-payments or co-insurance when we receive health care, so we don’t get an idea of treatment costs when we receive them,” he told CTV News Channel Thursday.
Secondly, people may not realize how much of their taxes go into health care because there isn’t a single, collective health care tax. Instead, funding for the system comes from multiple sources, including income taxes, the Canadian Pension Plan, and Employment Insurance. This combination "blurs the true dollar cost of the service," the study authors argue.
Lastly, Canadians may be confused about costs because spending is often shown in aggregate sums, resulting in numbers "so large they are almost meaningless." When Canadians hear a total of $141 billion was spent in health care last year, for example, it may be difficult to see how that affects individuals, the study says.
"This situation leads many people to grossly underestimate the true cost of health care," the report says.
To reach their estimates on the cost of health care, the report’s authors broke down the total cost of the Canadian health care system in 2014.
According to Statistics Canada, Canadians spent a total of $141 billion on health care that year. The authors divided that number by the Canadian population, concluding that, on average, each Canadian contributes $3,961 for health care each year.
However, as the report notes, not every Canadian pays an equal amount in taxes. Dependents and children are not responsible for paying taxes, while high-income earners must pay more than low-income earners.
To account for this, the study broke average Canadian families down into 10 income groups, concluding that Canada’s poorest families pay $477 a year for health care, while the wealthiest earners pay $59,666 a year. The report also found that the cost of health care is on the rise, increasing 1.6 times faster than the average income.
Barua says that increase should tell Canadians something about the sustainability of the system, “and reminds us we need to be vigilant about how these increases are trending up.”
Barua and the study’s co-authors say they hope their findings will help Canadians "more clearly understand just how much they pay for public health care."
"With a more precise estimate," they write, "Canadians will be in a better position to decide whether they are getting a good return on the money they spend." The Fraser Institute, which has published multiple studies and commentaries critiquing the Canadian health care system, describes itself as an independent and non-partisan research organization.
According to the study, Canadian families will pay on average between $3,592 to $11,786 for public health insurance in 2014, depending on the size of their family. For the purposes of their research, the study authors looked at six different family types.
The study found that over the last 10 years, the cost of public health care insurance for the average Canadian family has increased:
And Canada had to admit around 2010 that their system was unsustainable.
That’s the same system Trump tells us is working well...lol
RE: That’s the same system Trump tells us is working well...lol
Trump never explains why it works so well in Canada and Scotland ( two countries he cites ) but will not work for the USA.
He certainly isn’t proposing a similar system for his healthcare plan.
Does he apply the same criteria when he analyzes our Social Security and Medicare?
YUP! It’s called Managed Health Care! Slowly but surely salary caps on doctors plus cut backs in services such as disappearing private doctors in practice. Sarah Palin called the it “death panels” while in Canada its managed health care by a panel of bureaucrats, who know better!
The figures in the article do not include the amount paid by Canadians crossing the border and paying directly for more sophisticated and more expensive health care treatments.
Let’s put it this way ... if you are in an emergency situation, or say have a complicated child birth case, your taxes already pay for it and it looks “free” in Canada.
It works great when your income is not that high.
However, if you have a painful health problem that will not kill you immediately, you will have to WAIT FOR MONTHS to have it taken care of by a doctor. Since private practice are almost non-existent in Canada, you have no choice but to go out of the country if you have the money to pay for it.
I still believe a hybrid Swiss-like system is probably the best compromise.
RE: Slowly but surely salary caps on doctors plus cut backs in services such as disappearing private doctors in practice.
Can anyone tell me whether private practice is even allowed in Canada?
Is a doctor allowed to open his own clinic and charge patients for procedures he gives?
$11K would be a reduction from the cost of my unsubsidized Obamacare bronze plan. Insurance premiums plus deductibles and out of pocket expenses currently running $20K for husband and wife.
My long time private doctor was driven out of his practice because the government reduced his funding & associated fees (overhead) to run the practice. Walk-in clinics are now the new private doctors with long wait lines.
Procedures codes(payouts) approved by the “managed health care” panel. Canadians fought against any two-tier medical service, kinda like an opt-out thing with fees. Specialist are differently run with more flexibility.
Biggest issue still remaining are long wait lines. Those with money go to the US for fast and efficient service.
Theoretically, family doctors are private businesses. They pay office costs, pay salaries, ect... The difference is they charge back to Ministry of Health.
RE: Theoretically, family doctors are private businesses. They pay office costs, pay salaries, ect... The difference is they charge back to Ministry of Health.
SOME THOUGHTS:
* I hope they are reimbursed the cost of treating the patient. Here in the USA, Doctors are complaining that their Medicaid reimbursements are in many cases, LESS than what they spent.
I’ve already seen a few doctors I know who have OPTED OUT of participating in Medicaid.
* What can a patient do if they need specialize treatment? Are there family doctor specialists? Or are they mostly just general practitioners?
My wife is originally from Scotland, a few months ago her Dad called the emergency line complaining of chest pains and was told to take some aspirin and make an appointment with a doctor (He doesn’t have a regular Doctor). He went along with it stating “It’s okay, I’m old and the money could be spent better else where” My wife who lives who has lived here for decades was not amused, we contacted the family over there and they took him to an emergency room ASAP. They said it was from over exertion caused by laying bricks at 72 years of age to make extra money. We tried to get him to come to the US for medical treatment, but he won’t get on a plane (something to do with planes during WWII). He is a very proud and humble Scotsman.
My American wife was surprised that Canadians don’t generally have pediatric doctors for their children. Everyone pretty much sees their general doctor. To see a specialist you must be referred by your family doctor. And they are few and far between. I know on Vancouver Island in BC (population 600,000), there was one brain specialist, and one allergy specialist. Took me 8 months to see the brain specialist. My family doctor refused to send me to the allergy specialist saying my allergies were not bad enough to warrant the cost to the system. So I got another family doctor and got that sorted out.
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