Fraser Institute states governments continue to ignore positive health reform lessons of countries such as Switzerland and the Netherlands—including on pharmacare
VANCOUVER—A new
study released today by the Fraser Institute highlights positive reform lessons
from Switzerland and the Netherlands—two countries that provide universal
access to high-quality health care with shorter wait times, greater
availability of medical resources, and often superior outcomes compared to
Canada. And importantly, both countries also maintain universal coverage for
pharmaceuticals.
“Many proponents of national pharmacare note that Canada is the only industrialized universal health-care country that does not provide universal coverage for prescription drugs, but those same proponents often ignore the fact that other countries provide universal health care markedly differently than Canada,” commented Kristina Acri, professor of economics at Colorado College and the co-author of the study Universal Insurance for Pharmaceuticals in Switzerland and the Netherlands.
Individuals are required to pay health
insurance premiums and are subject to some cost-sharing (co-payments and/or
deductibles). Low-income citizens and those facing high drug costs are
protected through premium discounts, cost-sharing exemptions and other
public-safety nets.
“Canadians would be well-served if their governments recognize the successful universal health-care systems in other countries such as Switzerland and the Netherlands as a model for reform, including covering prescriptions drugs,” Acri said.
A sign of governments continuing to ignore these positive reform lessons from other countries is the federal government’s recent report on national pharmacare.
It proposed a “single-payer” model where government
(funded by taxpayers) pays for coverage, which would likely replicate many of
the observed failures in Canada’s current single-payer health-care system.
“Before making a monumental change to pharmaceutical coverage in Canada, policymakers should consider broad health insurance premiums that would include new and better ways to ensure drug coverage for Canadians,” said Bacchus Barua, study co-author and associate director of the Fraser Institute's Centre for Health Policy Studies.
REPORT AUTHORS:
- Kristina M.L. Acri, née Lybecker ... Associate Professor of Economics, Colorado College
- Bacchus Barua ... Associate Director, Health Policy Studies, Fraser Institute
CLICK HERE to read the Executive Summary
CLICK
HERE to read the full report
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