For the first time since the pandemic, inflation-adjusted spending per person is expected to surpass its previous peak, reached in 2021.<\/p>\n
But Canada already ranks among the higher-spending countries in the developed world, while patients continue to struggle with long wait times, overcrowded hospitals and difficulty finding family doctors.<\/p>\n
That raises a central question: Is Canada spending enough on health care, or does the problem lie in how that money is being spent?<\/p>\n
“I believe that these records of spending are just buying us more of the same right now,” said Jason Sutherland, a professor at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver and director of the Centre for Health Services and Policy Research.<\/p>\n
He argues that without substantial changes to how health care is organized and delivered, additional spending is unlikely to produce meaningful improvements for patients.<\/p>\n
WATCH | 1 in 10 ER patients waiting more than 14 hours for care, report finds:![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/1794742689_14_default.jpg\")
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1 in 10 Canadians waiting more than 14 hours in emergency rooms: report<\/p>\n
A new report by the Canadian Institute for Health Information says that in 2024-2025, one in 10 patients in emergency departments end up spending more than 14 hours there waiting for care. Dr. Michael Herman, a spokesperson for the Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians, says the report’s findings aren’t a surprise.Is $10,000 per person a lot?<\/p>\n
The $10,398 figure represents the combined cost of publicly and privately funded health care, including hospitals, doctors, prescription drugs and services paid for through private insurance or directly by patients. It is not the amount each Canadian pays in taxes.<\/p>\n
While the figure may seem substantial, international comparisons provide important context.<\/p>\n
According to the CIHI report, Canada devoted 11.5 per cent of its gross domestic product to health care in 2024, compared with an OECD average of 9.3 per cent<\/a>.<\/p>\n That placed Canada alongside other high-spending countries, including France at 11.3 per cent and Sweden at 11.2 per cent, but below Germany at 12.2 per cent and the United States at 17.2 per cent.<\/p>\n “We are not cheap in our health-care spending,” Sutherland said.<\/p>\n LISTEN | Ontario doctors demand an apology over provincial letters urging reduced hours and delayed care:<\/p>\n Here and Now Toronto7:49Why is the Ontario Ministry of Health asking doctors to scale back their hours and delay patient care? <\/p>\n Some Ontario doctors are demanding an apology from the province after receiving letters from the ministry asking them to scale back their hours and delay patient care. The Ontario Medical Association is worried the letters could scare doctors into doing just that. Dr. Rebbeca Hicks is the President of the OMA. She was on Here and Now.<\/p>\n Sara Allin, an associate professor at the University of Toronto’s Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, agreed that Canada’s spending is substantial. But she said the more revealing comparison is what countries achieve with their investments.<\/p>\n She pointed to data showing Canada performs relatively well on some measures, including life expectancy and vaccination rates, but continues to lag in important areas of access and service delivery.<\/p>\n “We have very persistently long wait times,” Allin said. “We have persistent challenges with care co-ordination.”<\/p>\n She described Canada’s health system as generally a middle performer among countries with similarly high expenditures.<\/p>\n WATCH | Soaring cancer drug prices prompt warning over patient access: His cancer drug costs $90,000\/month. Doctors say it\u2019s greed<\/p>\n Cancer doctors across Canada are sounding the alarm over drug prices pushing public health care past a breaking point. CBC\u2019s Christine Birak breaks down the numbers and hears from dozens of frontline oncologists about the impact of surging costs on patients.More money, but where is it going?<\/p>\n The CIHI report identifies a potentially important change in how health-care spending is growing.<\/p>\n Inflation-adjusted spending per person is projected to grow 2.3 per cent this year, compared with just 0.4 per cent in 2025.<\/p>\n More significantly, CIHI estimates public-sector spending will increase by more than $5 billion beyond what is needed to keep pace with inflation and demographic changes. <\/p>\n Adam Rondeau, CIHI’s manager of health spending and operations analytics, said the increase could be an early indication that governments are investing in additional capacity, new technologies and innovations in health-care delivery.<\/p>\n But determining precisely where that money is going is more complicated.<\/p>\n “It’s difficult to say X number of dollars is net new and related to a given program of work,” Rondeau said.<\/p>\n He explained that the report identifies additional spending but cannot establish whether that investment is producing shorter wait times, more available services or better patient outcomes.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the report states that spending on physicians is projected to increase 8.3 per cent this year, substantially faster than overall health-care spending.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/1794742689_551_default.jpg\")
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