Health Care in United States, Canada

Canadians Pay Less than Americans for Medical Care and are Healthier

Aug 8, 2009 Brian Deming

As the health care debate heats up in the United States, comparisons are being drawn between the United States and Canada. Canada comes out pretty good.

In the United States, lawmakers are looking for ways to reform the health care system to better control costs and improve care. The search for answers has led many to look north at Canada’s health care system, largely a publicly funded single-payer system supported by the government. By contrast, U.S. health care is largely paid for by a mix of public and private insurance programs.

So which system works better?

First health:

• Infant mortality. Canadian babies are more likely to live than American babies. In the United States, infant mortality is 50.8 per 10,000 live births, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), That’s 23% higher than in Canada, where infant mortality is 41.4 per 1000 live births, according to the OECD.
• Life expectancy. Canadians live longer than Americans. According to the OECD, life expectancy in the United States is 77.8 years. A Canadian can expect to more than two years longer (80.4 years).
• Preventable deaths. Canadians are less likely than Americans to die from in ways that could have been prevented by quick access to effective health care, according to a study supported by the Commonwealth Fund. For every 100,000 people in the United States, about 110 die each year from preventable causes. That compares to 77 per 100,000 in Canada.

Now, what about the cost of health care?

• The United States as a nation spends a higher portion of its wealth on health care. In 2007, Canada spent 10% of its gross domestic product (GDP) on health care. The United States spend 15.3% of its GDP on health care, according to the OECD. (As it turns out the government of each country spends about the same percentage of GDP on health care (7%). However, the Canadians spend far less private wealth on health care (3% compared to 8.3% of GDP).
• The per-capita spending for health in the United States is almost 90 percent more than it is in Canada. In 2007, health care spending per capita in the United States was $7,290. That compares to $3,895 per person in Canada, according to the OECD.

What about access to care? Critics charge that an important flaw in Canadian system is the problem of waiting times. Canadians must wait to have certain procures done. Americans, those with the cash or insurance, presumably don’t. However, many Americans have neither the cash nor the insurance. The result:

• About a quarter of Americans with above-average incomes go without needed care due to costs, according to the OECD. As for Americans with below-average incomes, over half (52%) go without care because they can’t pay for it.
• By comparison, in Canada, 7% of those with above-average income and about 18% of those with below-average income with go without care due to costs, according to the OECD

Can all these differences in health and spending be attributed to the differences in systems alone. Perhaps not. But the differences in the systems probably have a significant role, considering so many similarities between the United States and Canada in terms of wealth, education, and culture, and considering that health care statistics of the two countries pretty much matched before Canada introduced its system after 1971, according to "Has Canada Got the Cure" by Holly Dressel (YES! Magazine, posted August 4, 2006).

In reforming its health care system, the United States could find valuable lessons in Canada’s example.

The copyright of the article Health Care in United States, Canada in American Affairs is owned by Brian Deming. Permission to republish Health Care in United States, Canada in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Hospital examination of newborn

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Comments

Aug 11, 2009 10:09 AM

Guest :

Thanks Brian Deming for an article that seems to nicely point out the facts, although I haven't taken time to double check them.
I hope the United States will move closer toward a single payer health care plan, perhaps something similar to what is advocated by Ralph Nader -- and one that emphasizes better preventive care (regular exercise, better diet, not abusing drugs, etc.).
I agree Brian that "the United States could find valuable lessons in Canada's example."

Sep 7, 2009 6:26 PM

Guest :

As a country that believes in free enterprise and cutting costs to boost the bottom line, logically cutting out the "middleman" and saving billions as they say in the retail industry would be the way to go. However, when Big Money and ingrained institutions are involved, the Middleman (the insurance companies, actuaries, HMOs, doctors) will not go away quietly. The lies being made about the Canadian health system in order to stop any change to the Health system is scandalous and it is the ordinary Americans that will suffer because of it. Such misinformation like Canadians must wait to see a doctor (wrong - can see family physician, go to clinic or emergency room at any time) or the government dictates which doctor you can see (wrong - it is up the individual to select a doctor they are comfortable with) is perpetuated by the media (esp. Fox News) and clouds the debate. Unfortunately once a myth is out there, you can't stop it. I can say this for a fact as I met a woman recently while in Florida who was astonished when she asked how we like our health system and we told her that we loved it. She repeated the myth when her next comment was "But don't you have to be on a wait list to see a doctor?" We had to laugh when we told her we can see any doctor we want at any time and it is a matter of calling and getting an appointment. She went on to say that she was quite happy the way things are and with her health plan that she has with her employer. My next question to her was - What happens tomorrow if you lost your job like a lot of Americans have? She was a little more thoughtful after that.

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