Archive for the ‘Health Debates’ Category
Drug company promotion negatively affects how doctors prescribe: Insights from a new Cochrane review
Friday, October 9th, 2026
… pharmaceutical promotion must be addressed as a commercial determinant of health — a key pathway through which corporations negatively impact public health… The medical community and governments can no longer ignore the consequences of the promotion of medicines on prescribing. It is time for strong concrete action to be taken to put an end to the way that companies are allowed to influence doctors.
Tags: Health, jurisdiction, pharmaceutical
Posted in Health Debates | 1 Comment »
Why anxiety and mood disorders are skyrocketing in Canada — and who is being hit the hardest
Tuesday, September 15th, 2026
In the past decade, we’ve seen the internet transform the way people, especially youth, connect and spend time with each other. It’s led to growing social isolation, fewer in-person events and less physical activity; a recent report from Mental Health Research Canada linked extended screen time and negative online experiences with higher rates of depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation among Canadian youth. At the same time, the world is in a period of growing uncertainty… we’re also seeing greater socioeconomic disparity and uncertainty over time…
Tags: mental Health
Posted in Health Debates | 1 Comment »
When politicians tell us health-care spending is unsustainable, they never seem to mention this
Monday, August 17th, 2026
… the single largest private-spending category in Canada is prescription drugs. We remain the only high-income country in the world whose universal healthcare system lacks a universal drug plan…. the notion that our health-care system is at risk because governments are spending too much is misleading in a country where seniors cover the cost of long-term care beds, parents pay out of pocket for their children’s dental work and patients spend too much on the medications they need to be healthy.
Tags: budget, Health, ideology, jurisdiction, pharmaceutical, standard of living
Posted in Health Debates | 4 Comments »
Ontario got $3.2 billion for health care. What did patients get?
Thursday, August 13th, 2026
The Ford government spent a record $111.9 million to advertise in 2024—25. Yet its public agreement update does not give Ontarians a provider-level accounting of where the $3.2 billion in federal health funding went or what each investment delivered… Ontarians have a right to know how federal and provincial health dollars are spent and what public services, shorter waits or better access those dollars deliver.
Tags: budget, Health, jurisdiction
Posted in Health Debates | 2 Comments »
Carney government restores some health coverage it had cut for refugees
Sunday, August 9th, 2026
“The July 2026 update is expected to impact a very small proportion of current IFHP beneficiaries and will largely maintain the approximately $200 million in projected annual savings associated with the May 2026 program changes, while better aligning coverage for these select services with how they’re typically delivered through publicly funded provincial and territorial health care systems”… “When we ensure that everyone has access to the care that they need, we build healthier communities, and that’s what actually makes Canada strong.”
Tags: budget, Health, ideology, immigration, standard of living
Posted in Health Debates | 2 Comments »
Black women say they’re at risk due to unequal health care. The Ford government is being urged to act
Thursday, May 7th, 2026
… there’s a lack of data about the experiences of Black women and girls in Canada when accessing health-care… A health system ill-equipped to provide a basic standard of care for a community group that already disproportionately faces higher rates of certain chronic illnesses and medical conditions could lead to worse health outcomes and higher mortality… The top barriers… were long wait times and a lack of culturally competent health providers.
Tags: Education, Health, multiculturalism, women
Posted in Health Debates | 32 Comments »
Why is alcohol use declining in Canada?
Wednesday, April 15th, 2026
Based on alcohol sales data… the decline appears to be real… Over time, reductions in consumption should translate into gains for public health and savings for the health-care system and taxpayers, as alcohol-related costs exceed tax revenues. While reductions in alcohol sales adversely affect alcohol-related industries, reallocating dollars spent on alcohol benefits other sectors of the economy.
Tags: Health
Posted in Health Debates | No Comments »
Ontario is closing its supervised consumption sites, calling them a failure. So what counts as ‘success?’
Tuesday, March 31st, 2026
Supervised consumption sites are not beyond criticism: they can be better designed, better integrated and more responsive to the communities that host them. But improving them requires better policy, not selective evidence and site closures… Adding treatment capacity does not require removing the safety net beneath it.
Tags: Health, ideology, jurisdiction
Posted in Health Debates | 5 Comments »
There are realistic solutions to our growing mental health crisis
Wednesday, February 18th, 2026
In primary care, mental health concerns account for roughly one-in-five visits to family physicians in Canada and most primary care practices in Ontario do not have embedded mental health professionals. Too often, patients leave with a referral, not support, and join another wait-list… A mental health system that waits for crisis is not care… We must find new ways to invest in early, visible and embedded support.
Tags: jurisdiction, mental Health, multiculturalism, youth
Posted in Health Debates | No Comments »
What causes depression? What we know, don’t know and suspect
Tuesday, February 17th, 2026
Depression arises from a mix of factors – biological (genes and hormones), psychological (personality and thoughts) and social (stress and life events). Treatment options are based on all of these factors, as well as considering how severe the depression is… While science has made some progress in understanding depression, what underpins each person’s experience is unique.
Tags: mental Health
Posted in Health Debates | No Comments »
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