About half of Manitobans think more private health care will only make the system worse, according to a recent poll from the Angus Reid Institute.
Staffing shortages and experiences of poor care across the country have officials searching for answers to Canada’s health care challenges.
In some cases, this includes opening a debate about private health care.
The Institute conducted an online survey from Aug. 8 to Aug. 10 this year among a representative randomized sample of 2,279 Canadian adults.
The results from the poll found half of Canadians are rejecting the idea of more private care, while the other half are less certain.
In total, one in three (32 per cent) poll respondents said that more private care would improve the health care system, while one-in-five (18 per cent) said they’re not sure where they stand in this discussion.
For Manitobans, 51 per cent were against private care, 21 per cent were unsure and 27 per cent think it would improve the system.
Additionally, the poll goes into the current state of the health care system across different provinces.
In no region was there a majority of respondents who would describe the system as ‘good’. Instead, at least three-in-five in every part of the country said their local health care is in a poor state.
The poll suggests only two-in-five (39 per cent) disagree, instead describing their local health-care system as ‘good’ or ‘very good’ with no issues.
In Manitoba, 28 per cent believe the system is in crisis and 36 per cent have said it’s in good or poor state.
Furthermore, Canadians were asked how concerned they are about health care issues such as staffing shortages, wait times and a lack of family doctors. Nearly all said they are concerned about staffing shortages, wait times in emergency departments, and delays getting surgery and nine-in-ten (87 per cent) said they are worried about a local lack of family doctors.
According to the poll, Americans have a much more positive impression of their health care system than Canadians.
Three-quarters describe the state of their health care as ‘good’ or ‘very good with no real issues,’ a rate nearly double that of Canadians who say the same.
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