« Bottleneck in Canada’s Health-Care System | Main | No More Munchies »
March 04, 2007
Canada Inches Closer to Private Health Options
Source: MacLean's, Vol.119, No.18, May 1, 2006
Description of Issue:
Canadians are forced out of necessity, to investigate medical treatment options outside the publicly funded health insurance system. With an estimated 800,000 people on wait lists, more and more Canadians are looking beyond the Medicare system. While strongly supportive of universal public health care, a growing number of Canadians favor the creation of a Parallel Private System to augment the public health care system. However, Canada needs to get a handle on the massive implications and opportunities related to private medical care. One outcome has been for two American hospitals to branch into the Canadian market: 1) Ohio based Cleveland Clinic; 2) Texas based M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. The United States options are now easier for Canadians to access treatment rather than traveling outside the country.
Implications for Pharmacy:
One clear implication for Pharmacy is that the United States leads Canada by several years in drug availability for Cancers. Patients now treated by a U.S. doctor will follow a treatment plan in Canada. If patients need drugs not available in the Canadian public system, arrangements can be made. However, there will need to be collaboration between U.S. health professionals and Pharmacists/Physicians in Canada. A challenge for Canadian health advocates is getting Canadian health insurance to pay the bill.
Posted by mmacneil at March 4, 2007 10:37 AM