Healthcare Expenditure
- Over the past ten years, Saskatchewan’s healthcare expenditure has outpaced the growth rate of the Canadian Consumer Price Index (CPI) threefold
- More specifically, Saskatchewan has increased its healthcare spending by 39.4% between 2011 and 2021
- A 19.5% increase between 2013 and 2016 was followed by a relatively stable 1-2% the following two years
- However, COVID-19 increased spending to 43.6% of total provincial revenue by the end of 2021
- This trend will continue to increase in correlation to an aging population and new viral variants, predicting a model that will eventually become unsustainable
Population Data
- Saskatchewan’s population has increased by 18% over the last 20 years
- The median age has also increased during that time by 4.7%, from 36.4 years in 2001 to 38.1 years in 2021
- The largest increase has occurred within the 60+ range, by more than 89%
- An increase in the quantity and age of the population will directly provoke a rise in healthcare expenditure, requiring a perpetually greater portion of provincial revenue
- Will the citizens of Saskatchewan be able to sustain it?
Source: 2010-2021 Saskatchewan Public Accounts
