Health Expenditures in Canada by Age and Sex, 1980-81 to 2000-01 - Statistical Annex

Health Policy and Communications Branch
Health Canada
August 2001
ISBN 0-662-65967-8 (print publication)
Cat. H21-172/2001-2 (print publication)

Help on accessing alternative formats, such as PDF, MP3 and WAV files, can be obtained in the alternate format help section

(57K) Statistical Annex

Table of Contents

Introduction
List of Figures
List of Statistical Tables
Figures
Statistical Tables

Introduction

The Statistical Annex is a companion to the report Health Expenditures in Canada by Age and Sex, 1980-81 to 2000-01, which was published as part of a number of studies undertaken by Health Canada on the impact of the ageing of our population on health care expenditures.

The Statistical Annex consists of two sections. The first presents a number of charts on selected data on health expenditures by age and sex. The second section contains detailed statistical tables on health expenditures by age and sex.

Tables 1 to 8 and 9 to 16 cover health expenditures by sector of finance. Tables 17 to 23 and 24 to 30 show provincial and territorial government health expenditures by category of expenditure. Tables 31 to 37 and 38 to 44 cover private sector health expenditures by category of expenditure. Tables 45 to 53 and 54 to 62 give the public and private share of health expenditures by category of expenditure.

For each of the above series of tables, the first set show data for Canada for the years 1980-81 to 2000-01 and the last set show data for the provinces and territories for the year 2000-01.

Tables 63 to 76, 77 to 90, 91 to 104 and 105 to 118 cover, respectively total, provincial and territorial government, private sector and other public sector health expenditures by province and territory.

Finally, Tables X1 and X2 present population by age and sex for Canada from 1980 to 2000 and for each province and territory for 2000.

The main report, Health Expenditures in Canada by Age and Sex, 1980-81 to 2000-01, is made up of four sections: trend analysis accompanied by text figures and text tables; definitions; methodology; and statistical tables.

Both report and this Statistical Annex are available on the Health Canada Web site or in print on request. A Methodology Guide is available on request only.

The main report is the second prepared by Health Canada on health expenditures by age group, sex, category of expenditure, sector of finance and province and territory. The second report covers two decades of health expenditure.

In the main report, age groups are recorded in ten-year age groups. As well, estimates for seniors are now available for three sub-groups: 65-74, 75-84 and 85+. Seven categories of expenditure are covered: hospitals; other institutions; physicians; other professionals; drugs; home care services; and other expenditures.

For each sector of finance and category of expenditure, the Methodology Guide presents: the definition of the relevant sector of finance or category of expenditure; the source of administrative data used to distribute health expenditures by age and sex; the description and source of the proxy variables used to distribute health expenditures by age and sex when no administrative data were available; the method of extrapolation used to estimate years where data were missing; and a caveat whenever necessary.

Finally, the Technical Notes section explains concepts related to this study, such as population estimates and projections, deflators, the method used for extrapolation and the method used for long-term projections. The last section also explains how home care expenditures were estimated.

Estimates were derived from a new model of health expenditures by age and sex. This model will assist health policy analysts and researchers with the analysis of the impact of the ageing of our population on different categories of health expenditure. It will also contribute to a better understanding of cost drivers and pressures on our primarily publicly financed health care system.

Initial data used to estimate health expenditures by age and sex were extracted from the National Health Expenditure (NHEX) Database maintained by the Canadian Institute for Health Information (CIHI). However, Health Canada has presented the data on a fiscal year basis to facilitate the analysis of health expenditures from a provincial and territorial government perspective.

A separate estimate was also prepared by Health Canada for home care service expenditures provided by provincial and territorial governments, because CIHI estimates were not available for all the provinces and territories, and do not currently include homemaking services. Health Canada also made a separate, preliminary estimate for private sector home care service expenditures.

Caution should be exercised when comparing data between the provinces and territories, either from a per capita or a percentage distribution perspective. In most provinces and territories, the programs and services may cover a different population and provide different benefits. The amount of benefit may also vary according to clinical evaluation, assessment of needs and co-payment charges. Moreover, in many provinces and territories, coverage and terms for programs and services have changed over the years.