Last year, Canadians could expect to wait 25.6 weeks from referral by a family physician to elective surgical care.
health care reform
According to the province’s official figures, at least 88,300 patients continue to languish on surgical wait lists.
The province's median wait time was about three months longer than the Canadian average.
Albertans waited 32.1 weeks for medically necessary treatment—6.5 weeks longer than the Canadian average.
In 2019, more than 166,000 patients in the province were waiting for treatment after seeing a specialist.
Saskatchewan cut surgical wait times by, among other reforms, partnering with private clinics.
Albertans faced a median wait time of 28 weeks compared to a national average of 20.9 weeks.
Patients could expect to wait almost 21 weeks for elective treatment.
Canada ranks among the bottom of OECD universal health-care countries for the number of doctors and hospital beds.