Long waiting lists for surgeries could be shortened by embracing “redundant” medical practices, says a new report.
A Montreal Economic Research Institute report released Thursday said the lengthy surgical lineup would shrink if the government allowed private medical practices to compete in Canada.
First on the list is allowing Canadians to purchase “duplicate” health insurance, says Maria Lily Shaw, author of the report.
Double insurance is insurance that provides coverage for both the public and private sectors. Shaw said it could connect Canadians to a treatment option not currently available to everyone: private sector treatment.
“Rather than making it accessible only to those who can afford it out of pocket, we can make private care accessible to the middle class,” she said.
According to Shaw, this would remove people from the long lines for treatment that currently plague Canada.
Pointing to Quebec, she said about 160,000 citizens were on a waiting list for surgery in January of this year, with a third of them waiting six months.
“It’s no secret. Our healthcare system hasn’t cut it,” Shaw said.
“The healthcare system must be restructured to introduce competition.”
Last March, Quebec’s Health Minister Christian Duvet announced that Quebec needed an overhaul of its health care system, although duplication of health coverage remains prohibited.
