Bacchus Barua

BARUA: Revealing your annual bill for public health care

According to a recent survey by Statistics Canada, almost half of Canadians said rising prices are affecting their ability to meet day-to-day expenses. At the same time, Canadians are increasingly aware of their significant tax burden, with 74% feeling the average family is overtaxed. This is unsurprising, given that the average Canadian family spends more on taxes than food, clothing and shelter.

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September 12, 2024 Columnists

A treatment room in the emergency department

MOIR AND BARUA: Canada should learn from Australia’s health-care system

Faced with record-high wait times, a majority of Canadians support partnerships between the government and private sector to deliver publicly funded health care. And yet, advocates for the status quo — including the Trudeau government and several high-profile politicians — continue to criticize such arrangements. Public/private partnerships are the norm in many successful universal health-care systems worldwide.

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January 23, 2024 Columnists

Anesthetist Working In Operating Theatre Wearing Protecive Gear checking monitors while sedating patient before surgical procedure in hospital

OPINION: Canada needs new strategies to combat health-care wait times

Despite the valiant efforts of health-care workers across the country, Canada’s health-care system is in shambles.

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December 12, 2023 Columnists

A woman walks by the emergency department

OPINION: Health-care wait times cost Canadians billions of dollars

While the pandemic is now squarely behind us, Canadian governments remain unable to deliver timely access to medically necessary elective (a.k.a. scheduled) surgical care. And a new study reveals the economic costs of these wait times on patients and the economy.

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May 17, 2023 Columnists

A scrub nurse prepares surgical instruments in an operating room at Belleville General Hospital in Belleville, Ont., April 28, 2014.

OPINION: Health-care wait times cost Canadians billions of dollars

While the pandemic is now squarely behind us, Canadian governments remain unable to deliver timely access to medically necessary elective (a.k.a. scheduled) surgical care. And a new study reveals the economic costs of these wait times on patients and the economy.

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May 17, 2023 Columnists

Hospital doctor nurse health care staff holding clock wait times stock photo getty images

Guest Opinion: Alberta takes another step towards reducing health-care wait times

The Alberta government recently announced a partnership with the Enoch Cree Nation to deliver 3,000 publicly funded orthopedic surgeries (such as hip and knee replacements) annually in a new private surgical facility.

July 13, 2022 Columnists

Surgical tools lying on table while group of surgeons at background operating patient in surgical theatre

OPINION: Long wait times for health care predated pandemic

After a two-year battle with COVID-19, Toronto’s top public health official recently expressed cautious optimism as cases continue to decline. However, as we now hopefully near the end of this battle, it’s time to look around and survey the damage across Canada.

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April 26, 2022 Columnists

An ambulance crew delivers a patient at Mount Sinai Hospital.

OPINION: Canada’s health-care challenges are only just beginning

According to recent estimates by the Canadian Institute of Health Information (CIHI), total health-care spending in Canada eclipsed $300 billion in 2020, with most of the increase (almost 90%) due to pandemic-related funding. The growth rate of total health-care spending is forecast to be much smaller (a little more than 2%) in 2021 than in 2020.

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November 16, 2021 Columnists

The emergency exit at St. Michael's Hospital in Toronto is pictured in this Aug. 14, 2016 file photo.

OPINION: COVID or not -- Canada’s health-care system faces challenges

Nineteen months into the COVID pandemic, Canada’s health-care system continues to face serious challenges, with hospitals in some provinces struggling with overcrowded ICU’s and staff burnout . The result? Despite progress in some quarters , elective surgeries are once again being postponed and non-COVID patients will have to wait for medically necessary care.

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November 9, 2021 Columnists