As I have noted in previous posts, supply and demand directly impact cost.   The supply of physicians in Canada is artificially restricted through limited enrollment to the countries medical schools  and so the cost of medical services provided by this doctors is high.  That is, there is a small supply of doctors and a large demand for their service.

Simple Statistics

The population of Canada is about thirty-five million and there are about seventy-seven thousand physicians.  That is one doctor for about every 450 people in Canada.   Unfortunately, about half of this population are aging baby boomers who require more frequent and lengthy medical services.

If there were say one doctor for every 100 people the increase in competition for patients would result in lower fees (the basic principle of supply and demand)

How about Canadian Medical Schools

The seventeen medical schools in Canada produce about 2,500 interns a years.  This is based on the limited enrollment to about 150 new students per school per year.    Given the it’s estimated ten to fifteen percent of doctors will retire in the next five to seven years (that’s about 8,000) the output from the schools will barely maintain the status quo as to the number of doctors in Canada (and remember the overall population continues to rise).

Supply is constant – demand is rising

The issue for Canada over the next five to ten years is; the supply of qualified physicians will remain constant while the population increases and the overall age shifts to those needing more medical care (i.e., older people).  Economically with demand continuing to outstrip supply the cost will rise until we can no longer afford the to maintain our universal health care system (medicare for all).

This will be the end of the healthcare as we know it today in Canada.  If you can get care (and that will really be dependent on finding someone who can provide the service) it will cost you.

And the Solution

End the artificial control on the supply of physicians in Canada  and quadruple the intake and output of medical schools.  A simple solution that the Canadian Medical Association is strongly opposed to – I wonder why?