Article content

Canada’s long wait times for medical treatment last year cost almost 1.4 million Canadians $4.2 billion — an average of $3,043 per patient — because of lost hours of work and reduced productivity, according to a new study by the Fraser Institute.

Article content

The report by the fiscally conservative think tank, “The Private Cost of Public Queues for Medically Necessary Care,” reported the average wait time for a patient from referral by a general practitioner to a specialist and from there to the start of treatment was 28.6 weeks in 2025.

Article content

Article content

These costs are slightly down from 2024, when 1.5 million patients paid a total of $5.2 billion out-of-pocket — or an average of $3,364 per patient in lost wages and productivity — while waiting 30 weeks from the time they were referred to a specialist by a general practitioner, to when treatment actually began.

But this year’s report noted all of its estimates are conservative because they only include work-related costs to the patient waiting for treatment, not their reduced quality of life, increased risk of death or complications resulting from delayed treatment, or costs borne by family members caring for a patient waiting for medical care.

Article content

Article content

“Valuing all hours of the week, including evenings and weekends but excluding eight hours of sleep per night would increase the estimated cost of waiting to $12.9 billion or $9,336 per patient,” according to the report.

International studies show Canada lagging on wait times

International studies of Canada’s health-care system — which is administered by the provinces with the federal government responsible for ensuring universality, portability, public administration, comprehensiveness, and accessibility — consistently find Canada has some of the longest medical wait times in the developed world among comparable countries with universal health care.

The Fraser Institute study estimates the average cost per patient of waiting for medical care in 12 surveyed specialties last year was highest in New Brunswick ($4,864) followed in descending order by Quebec ($3,912); Alberta ($3,724); P.E.I. ($3,466); Nova Scotia ($3,317); Newfoundland & Labrador ($3,261); Manitoba ($3,220); Saskatchewan ($3,195); B.C. ($2,720) and Ontario ($1,918).

Article content

All of these costs are in addition to federal and provincial taxes Canadians pay for health care.

“The rationing of health care in Canada through queues for medically necessary health services imposes direct costs on those waiting for care,” the study concludes.

“The ability of individuals who are waiting to enjoy leisure time and earn an income to support their families is diminished by physical and psychological pain and suffering. In addition, friends and family may be asked to help those waiting for treatment, or may suffer similar reductions in their productive lives, because of their own psychological pain.”

RECOMMENDED VIDEO

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

Play Video

Article content