Many Canadians are open to greater reliance on the private sector and are dissatisfied with the status quo, according to an Montreal Economic Institute (MEI)-Ipsos poll published Thursday.“People understand that the endless waiting lists that characterize our government-run health systems will not be solved by yet another bureaucratic reform,” explains Emmanuelle B. Faubert, economist at the MEI. “They can see that elsewhere in the world, mixed systems that allow more room for independent care providers don’t have the wait times that we have.”The poll shows that 50% of Canadians are dissatisfied with their provincial health care systems. This figure is highest in the Atlantic provinces, where two in three are dissatisfied.Nearly six in ten Canadians think the rate of growth of public health care spending is unsustainable, while only a quarter think the increase in health spending over the past decade had a positive impact.The poll also shows that 52% of Canadians agree with the idea of allowing greater access to private health care, while 29% are opposed. This proposition is particularly popular in Quebec, where it is supported by 65% of respondents.In Quebec, the independently run mini-hospitals project, accessible with the Quebec medicare card, is such a measure. The project is supported by 73% of Quebecers polled, with 17% opposed to it.“Quebecers’ support for the independent mini-hospitals project remains very strong,” says Faubert. “People have high expectations for this project and the final version of it must be in line with what was promised during the last election.”Respondents were asked, "Did you know that France and Sweden allow private entrepreneurs to manage some public hospitals, while still fully reimbursing patients for the medically required care they receive?" To this, 83% said no.However, having heard of this model, 65% say Canada should adopt it, and only 18% say they should not, with the remainder unsure.An increasing number of Canadians believe their provincial health care system is too bureaucratic. This opinion was held by 61% of Canadians in 2020 and 78% in the most recent poll.In all, 58% agree the rate of spending in the health care system is unsustainable and only 19% disagree, with the rest unsure. Asked if more tax dollars had made health care better over the past ten years, 33% say care has worsened, while only 25% say it is better.To the statement, "The healthcare system should be more decentralized and allow hospitals to be more autonomous and remunerated on the basis of the services they actually deliver," 62% agreed.Most Canadians (70%) believe private entrepreneurs can deliver health care better than the government. Only 15% disagreed and an equal number were unsure.A sample of 1,116 Canadians aged 18 years and over was polled between March 22 and 27, 2024. The margin of error is ± 3.3 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.The results of the MEI-Ipsos poll are available here: https://www.iedm.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/healthcare_poll_2024.pdf.
Many Canadians are open to greater reliance on the private sector and are dissatisfied with the status quo, according to an Montreal Economic Institute (MEI)-Ipsos poll published Thursday.“People understand that the endless waiting lists that characterize our government-run health systems will not be solved by yet another bureaucratic reform,” explains Emmanuelle B. Faubert, economist at the MEI. “They can see that elsewhere in the world, mixed systems that allow more room for independent care providers don’t have the wait times that we have.”The poll shows that 50% of Canadians are dissatisfied with their provincial health care systems. This figure is highest in the Atlantic provinces, where two in three are dissatisfied.Nearly six in ten Canadians think the rate of growth of public health care spending is unsustainable, while only a quarter think the increase in health spending over the past decade had a positive impact.The poll also shows that 52% of Canadians agree with the idea of allowing greater access to private health care, while 29% are opposed. This proposition is particularly popular in Quebec, where it is supported by 65% of respondents.In Quebec, the independently run mini-hospitals project, accessible with the Quebec medicare card, is such a measure. The project is supported by 73% of Quebecers polled, with 17% opposed to it.“Quebecers’ support for the independent mini-hospitals project remains very strong,” says Faubert. “People have high expectations for this project and the final version of it must be in line with what was promised during the last election.”Respondents were asked, "Did you know that France and Sweden allow private entrepreneurs to manage some public hospitals, while still fully reimbursing patients for the medically required care they receive?" To this, 83% said no.However, having heard of this model, 65% say Canada should adopt it, and only 18% say they should not, with the remainder unsure.An increasing number of Canadians believe their provincial health care system is too bureaucratic. This opinion was held by 61% of Canadians in 2020 and 78% in the most recent poll.In all, 58% agree the rate of spending in the health care system is unsustainable and only 19% disagree, with the rest unsure. Asked if more tax dollars had made health care better over the past ten years, 33% say care has worsened, while only 25% say it is better.To the statement, "The healthcare system should be more decentralized and allow hospitals to be more autonomous and remunerated on the basis of the services they actually deliver," 62% agreed.Most Canadians (70%) believe private entrepreneurs can deliver health care better than the government. Only 15% disagreed and an equal number were unsure.A sample of 1,116 Canadians aged 18 years and over was polled between March 22 and 27, 2024. The margin of error is ± 3.3 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.The results of the MEI-Ipsos poll are available here: https://www.iedm.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/healthcare_poll_2024.pdf.
