A recent report by the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI) provides some revealing data when it comes to health spending. Ontario spends less on health, on a per capita basis, than other provinces across the country.

National Health Expenditure Trends, 1975 to 2018 was released on Nov. 20. It finds Ontario ranks last in provincial per capita health spending at $4,064 per person. That’s significantly lower than the rest of the country, where the figure averages $4,594 per person.  

CIHI data also show that health-care cuts in Ontario are hitting the hospital sector especially hard. Over the last four decades, hospital spending dropped from 44 per cent of total health spending to 27 per cent. The result is that Ontario is the second-lowest per capita spender on hospitals, beating out only Quebec. Ontario sits well below the national average of $1,933 per person. 

RNAO says the funding crunch has led hospitals to avoid filling 10,000 vacant RN positions, and to replace RNs with less qualified health providers. CEO Doris Grinspun says this data should serve as a wake-up call for Queen’s Park, which claims previous governments had a “spending problem.” 

The evidence conclusively shows higher proportions of RN care are associated with lower mortality rates, fewer compli-cations, fewer hospital readmissions and greater patient satisfaction, Grinspun adds. 

For more information, visit RNAO.ca/CIHIreport2018