Canadians healthier than Americans, health care system credited.

Canadians are healthier than Americans, says a study published in the June issue of the Journal of Public Health. The research was from the Harvard University Medical Centre.

Researchers from Cambridge show that Canadians are 7 percent more likely than Americans to have a regular doctor and are more likely to receive preventive medical care. The U.S. spends twice as much as Canada on healthcare, yet Canadians live about 2 to 3 years longer. The authors raise questions about what Americans are getting out of the money spent on healthcare.

The authors found little difference in the health status of Americans covered by health insurance plans and Canadians under the universal system. However, an earlier report that compared American and British experience challenged this conclusion. The US-UK comparison found that Americans covered by health insurance had poorer health than UK residents who received the benefits of the Nation Health Service.

Canadians say they are healthier

Fewer Canadians said they had a chronic illness compared to
American in a survey of adults conducted jointly in both countries.

Joint Canada and U.S. Survey of Health results

CHRONIC ILLNESS    U.S. RESPONDENTS   CANADIAN

Hypertension             18.3%          13.9
Arthritis                17.9           16.0
Major depression          8.7            8.2
Asthma                    7.6            6.7
Diabetes                  6.7            4.7
Heart disease             5.9            5.5
COPD *                    1.9            1.0

NOTE: 5,183 Americans and 3,505 Canadians surveyed by Statistics
Canada and U.S. National Center for Health Statistics between
November 2002 and March 2003;

* Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

SOURCE: American Journal of Public Health

Note: Table made from bar graph.