The benefits of for-profit private hospitals in Germany.

The benefits of for-profit private hospitals in Germany.

Don Drummond’s report on Ontario’s finances.

Changes in life expectancy and the way we manage our pension programs.

Op-ed published exclusively on the Montreal Economic Institute's website.

For the past fifteen years, increases in health care spending have outpaced the growth of the Canadian economy. As a result, this spending takes up an increasing share of government budgets. The share of provincial and territorial program spending taken up by health care expenditures reached 37.7% in 2010. Not all sources of increased spending should be viewed as problems, of course. New medical technologies, for instance, even if sometimes quite expensive, can provide valuable services, and perhaps reduce other costs.

The promotional activities of pharmaceutical companies are regularly the target of criticism. Certain commentators imply that these businesses as a group devote too many resources to the promotion of their products, at the expense of their investments in research and development (R&D). Others maintain that these promotional activities alter the prescribing habits of doctors, which leads to a needless or even harmful rise in the consumption of drugs. Do these criticisms stand up to scrutiny?

Emergency rooms overcrowding.

The purpose of Quebec's Occupational Health and Safety Plan is to prevent industrial accidents and occupational diseases and to compensate the victims of such hazards. Strangely, while the number of these accidents and occupational diseases is dropping, the costs of compensation continue to rise, increasing the $2.55-billion annual bill entirely paid for by employers. This program alone represents the equivalent of 65% of corporate taxes paid in Quebec.

The Quebec health care system has long been a target of criticism. Since the mid-1970s, newspapers have been reporting on staff shortages, emergency room overcrowding, challenges in finding family doctors, waiting lists that keep getting longer, and so on. Optimal use of resources is vital if we wish to reduce waiting times and provide better and faster service to patients. Technological innovations, including telemedicine, are a way of improving the efficiency of the health care system and increasing the choices offered to patients. Sadly, the current government monopoly in the health care sector eliminates most natural incentives to innovate and make optimal use of resources.

Publication of an Economic Note on the improvement of the efficiency of Quebec’s health care system.

The role of the private sector in health care services.