Canadian health spending expected to reach $86-billion
Date: Dec. 21, 1999
Time: 7:43 am
The Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) estimates that total spending on health will jump from $81-billion in 1998 to an expected $86-billion in 1999, an increase of over 5%.
"CIHI's projections for 1998 and 1999 largely reflect planned increases in spending by provincial governments," explained Dr. John Horne, a CIHI health economist.
The figures reflect the total amount spent on health, from both the private and public purse. In 1997 public sector spending for health was estimated to be 69.4% of the total and that share is expected to rise slightly to 69.% in 1999.
In releasing the figures late last week, Horne said that while hospital care remains the largest single health care expense, its share has steadily declined since the 1970s.
"Projections show that the sales of prescribed and non-prescribed drugs are consuming an increasingly larger share of total health expenditure, replacing spending on physician services as the second largest category."
The CIHI projections were released as an overview of health care spending trends from 1975 to 1997 and included projections for 1998 and 1999.
— Steven Wharry, eCMAJ Today
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