Health system has to adapt to meet needs of aging population: CMA
Monday August 27, 2007 -- Deron Hamel
A recent poll indicating nearly half of Canadians are concerned about not having enough money to afford long-term care when they enter their golden years doesn’t surprise Betty Brisco.

According to the poll – which was conducted by Ipsos-Reid for the Canadian Medical Association (CMA) – 43 per cent of the 1,001 adults surveyed said they had this concern.

Brisco, the administrator and director of care at Maplewood, a Brighton long-term care home, says the long-term care sector has long been aware that many Canadians are worried about not being able to afford care if they should need it.

The issue, says Brisco, has become more pronounced as the baby boomers get closer to retirement age.

“The 43 per cent of respondents who are not confident they will have enough savings in their later years is reflective of the 60s carefree days of plenty,” she says.

“As we all approach the reality, with the majority of the population in this category, the pressure is mounting.”

In an Aug. 20 press release, CMA president Dr. Colin McMillan says the survey numbers indicate the health-care system needs to change to meet the needs of Canadians as they reach retirement age.

“In less than five years the first of the post-war baby boomers will turn 65 and Canada will face a long-term care crunch,” says McMillan. “Our system, focused largely on covering hospital and physician services, needs to adapt and grow to address new realities and meet new challenges.”

In the press release, the CMA says it commissioned the survey to get a better idea of what services are most important to Canadians, as well as “their level of worry as to being able to afford various services in the future, and what services should be a priority for governments.”

Highlights of the poll include:

• Forty-three per cent of Canadians are not confident they will have enough money to cover long-term care costs when they retire
• Thirty-seven per cent of respondents felt long-term care should be top priority if medicare is expanded
• Fifty per cent of those surveyed felt provincial governments should maintain 100 per-cent funding of physician and hospital services, even if individuals or their insurance companies have to cover costs of other services

The poll was conducted between June 19 and 29 and is considered accurate within a margin of 3.2 percentage points 19 times out of 20.