Canada health-care spending growth expected to stall after COVID surge: report
Global News
The total health spending in Canada is still expected to rise by 0.8 per cent this year, however that's much lower than the 7.6 per cent increase seen in 2021.
The growth in health spending seen during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic will slow dramatically in 2022, predicts a report by the Canadian Institute for Health Information.
The total health spending in Canada is still expected to rise by 0.8 per cent this year, however that’s much lower than the 7.6 per cent increase seen in 2021, and the 13.2 per cent surge in 2020.
The annual report released Thursday said the country’s health spending, including public and private expenditure, is projected to be $331 billion in 2022 – or $8,563 per Canadian – and around 12 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product for the year.
Chris Kuchciak, the manager of health expenditures at the Canadian Institute for Health Information, said COVID-19 was the main driver of health spending growth in the past two years.
But that is changing in 2022.
Kuchciak said the return of health-care services that were deferred during the pandemic and demographic changes such as population growth and an aging population are taking over as the drivers of spending growth.
“I liken it to a horse race where the last two years, COVID was way out in front driving spending. That has fallen back into the pack,” he said.
Bird flu has spread far and wide, infecting a range of species like chickens, skunks, cows, foxes and polar bears. But it's the pigs that have experts on high alert.
The CFIA has recalled E. coli-tainted carrots, following a U.S. health warning about the contaminated produce linked to one death and dozens of illnesses.
Health Canada said there was an issue with the braking system of the Stokke YOYO baby stroller, sold between August and October this year.
These editorial stories and interviews will focus on the people, companies, research, and innovations leading the environmental and sustainable movement in B.C.
Bennett had just returned from the school run last week when she found the mom and a baby raccoon unconscious, with one of the babies sleeping on the furniture.
B.C. health authorities have announced the first case of a human avian flu infection acquired in Canada, with the teenage patient in critical condition in hospital.
People have been hearing a lot about H5N1 bird flu — or highly pathogenic avian influenza — since a B.C. teen became the first human to get the virus in Canada and is in hospital.
The Liberal government and the NDP negotiated the substance of a pharmacare bill as part of their now-defunct supply-and-confidence agreement.
Kennedy ran as an independent presidential candidate but gave Trump his endorsement with a promise to have a role in health policy in the next Trump administration.
Emergency services are at the scene of a train derailment Thursday morning on Montreal's south shore, where they are urging citizens to stay away from the area.
"I was yelling at them saying get the F** away it’s a wild animal," resident Josh Merrin told Global News. "Sorry about my language."