Comparing Performance of Universal Health Care Countries, 2024

— Published on November 26, 2024

Comparing Performance of Universal Health Care Countries, 2024

Among 31 high-income universal healthcare countries, Canada ranks among the top third of spenders but receives average to poor value in return.
After adjusting for differences in age between countries, Canada ranked fourth highest for spending as a percentage of GDP and ninth highest for spending per person in 2022 (the most recent year of comparable data).
Across over 40 indictors measured, Canada’s performance for availability and timely access to medical resources was generally below that of the average OECD country.
In 2022, Canada ranked 28th (of 30) for the relative availability of doctors and 25th (of 30) for hospital beds dedicated to physical care. The same year, Canada ranked 27th (of 31) for the relative availability of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) machines, and 28th (of 31) for CT scanners.
Canada ranked last (or close to last) on three of four indicators of timeliness of care; and ranked sixth (of nine) on the indicator measuring the percentage of patients who reported that cost was a barrier to access.
Notably, among the nine countries that measure wait times, Canada ranked eighth worst for the percentage of patients who waited more than one month to see a specialist (65%), and reported the highest percentage of patients (58%) who waited two months or more for non-emergency surgery.
Canada’s performance for use of resources and quality and clinical performance was mixed.
Clearly, there is an imbalance between the value Canadians receive and the relatively high amount of money they spend on their health-care system.