Loss of confidence: Two-thirds believe Canada’s health care is ‘in a state of crisis’

Loss of confidence: Two-thirds believe Canada's health care is 'in a state of crisis' A shortage of doctors and nurses and long wait times are the biggest problems facing the system, according to Canadians surveyed A new national survey has found that 63 per cent of Canadians describe health care in their province as being in a state of crisis, while 55 per cent believe the system has gotten worse over the past five years. The research, which was conducted by Abacus Data and commissioned by the Canadian Health Coalition, also noted that these concerns cross political lines, with a majority of Conservative (58 per cent) and NDP (54 per cent) supporters believing the system has become worse. Nearly half of Liberal supporters (49 per cent) share the same opinion. Overall, 91 per cent of Canadians are concerned about public health care. And a separate survey, conducted by ResearchCo, looked into the possible reasons why. In this survey, 31 per cent of Canadians say a shortage of doctors and nurses is the biggest problem facing the health care system, while 28 per cent cite long wait times. Bureaucracy and poor management is third on the list of concerns (12 per cent), followed by inadequate resources and facilities (11 per cent). This comes after a recent report from the Canadian Institute for Health Information revealed that hundreds of thousands of sick and injured Canadians are spending 48 hours or longer in swamped emergency departments. The report illustrated intensifying wait times in short-staffed hospitals, with data showing that in 2024-25, 7.7 per cent of emergency visits (1.2 million) involved someone leaving without being assessed by a doctor, while one in 10, or 180,000 people, spent two days or more in emergency before they were moved to a ward bed or the operating room. In the ResearchCo survey, 20 per cent feel Canada’s health care system has so much wrong with it that it needs to be completely rebuilt. However, the same proportion believe Canada’s health care system works well and only minor changes are needed to make it work better. And 70 per cent feel “very confident” or “moderately confident” that Canada’s health care system would be there to provide the help and assistance that they would need if they faced an unexpected medical condition or disease. - Canadian family of four will pay $21K towards public health care this year: report - Canadians are dying in emergency rooms as wait times climb to 48 hours - Advertisement 1Story continues below The two surveys also measured Canadians’ opinions about private health care. The Abacus Data research found that the frustration with Canada’s health care system does not translate into broad support for private payment, with 85 percent believing that universal health care based on need rather than income is a core Canadian value. When asked to choose among different approaches, 49 per cent say medically necessary health care should remain publicly funded and available based on need at no cost to the patient, while only 11 per cent favour allowing Canadians to purchase private insurance to access medically necessary services outside the public system. Abacus Data notes that these findings suggest Canadians “have lost confidence in how well the system is performing but have not lost faith in the basic model itself.” Similarly, the ResearchCo survey found that 49 per cent reject the notion that health care in Canada would be better if it were run by the private sector, while 37 per cent expressed support. Meanwhile, Abacus Data also looked at public perceptions of Alberta’s Bill 11, which allows some physicians to split time between the public and private systems. While 71 per cent of Canadians outside the province had not heard of the legislation, the majority (53 per cent) opposed it after they were informed of the details. Among the main concerns are higher costs for patients (85 per cent), unequal access based on income (83 per cent), the cost of private insurance (83 per cent), and the possibility that expanding private care will make public wait times worse (81 per cent). Abacus Data CEO David Coletto said of the survey results: “Canadians want shorter waits, more workers and better access. But most remain resistant to a system in which someone’s income, insurance coverage or ability to pay plays a larger role in determining how quickly they receive medically necessary care.” The Abacus Data survey was conducted from July 9 to 20, 2026 and involved a combined sample of 3,000 Canadian adults. The ResearchCo survey was conducted from August 5 to August 7, 2026, among 1,001 adults in Canada. Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here. Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.