Canada’s health care spending is set to reach a new high in 2024, according to the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI). In an annual report released Thursday, it said total health care spending could reach $372 billion in 2024, or $9,054 per Canadian.
The CIHI’s national analysis shows that health care spending is set to increase by 5.7 per cent in 2024, up from 4.5 per cent in 2023 and 1.7 per cent in 2022.
This year’s health care spending is 12.4 per cent of Canada’s gross domestic product (GDP), the highest ratio in the country’s history, excluding the two-year pandemic.
It’s not unusual for health care spending to outpace economic growth. The report says that this is likely to happen in the coming years, as Canada’s growing population and older population continue to grow.
In 2022, Canada’s per capita health care spending was one of the highest in the world. But it’s still lower than countries like the United States and Sweden.
The report says that Canadian dental and pharma care plans are driving up healthcare costs because people who previously couldn’t afford them are now accessing services.
