- Government data obtained through FOI shows 23,746 patients died on waitlists during the past fiscal year, bringing the total to over 100,000 since 2018
Canadian think tank SecondStreet.org released government data today showing at least 23,746 patients died on government waiting lists over the past fiscal year. The data was obtained through Freedom of Information (FOI) requests and covers a wide array of services – heart surgery, hip operations, MRI scans, etc.
“What’s really sad is that behind many of these figures are stories of patients suffering during their final years – grandparents who dealt with chronic pain while waiting for hip operations, people leaving children behind as they die waiting for heart operations, so much suffering,” said SecondStreet.org President Colin Craig. “It doesn’t have to be this way. If we copied better-performing European public health systems, we could greatly reduce patient suffering.”
The data covers the fiscal year April 1, 2024 – March 31, 2025. Highlights include:
- At least 23,746 patients died in Canada while waiting for surgeries or diagnostic scans. This figure does not include Alberta and some parts of Manitoba, while some health bodies only had data on surgeries, not diagnostic scans. Most provinces have no data on patients dying while waiting for specialist appointments;
- Comparing data from health care bodies that provided information for both this year and last year shows a 3% increase in waiting list deaths. Patients died after waiting anywhere from less than a week to nearly nine years;
- New data from Ontario Health suggests 355 patients died while waiting for cardiac surgery or a cardiac procedure. While many cases did not include target wait times for providing treatment, there were at least 90 cases where patients died after waiting past targets that were stated or after waiting more than 90 days; and
- Since April 2018, SecondStreet.org has gathered government data showing more than 100,876 cases where Canadians died while waiting for care. In previous years, large portions of data were missing, so the total is likely much higher.
“It’s interesting that governments will regularly inspect restaurants and report publicly if there’s a minor problem such as a missing paper towel holder,” added Craig. “Meanwhile, no government reports publicly on patients dying on waiting lists. It’s quite hypocritical.”
To view the report – click here
To view the government FOI responses, see below.
British Columbia:
Interior Health ‒ surgery, diagnostic
Fraser Health ‒ surgery, diagnostic
Northern Health ‒ surgery, diagnostic
Island Health ‒ surgery, diagnostic
Vancouver Coastal Health ‒ surgery, diagnostic
Alberta
Alberta Health Services ‒ surgery, diagnostic
Saskatchewan
Ministry of Health ‒ surgery, diagnostic
Saskatchewan Cancer Agency ‒ click here
Manitoba
Prairie Mountain Health ‒ surgery, diagnostic
Southern Health ‒ surgery, diagnostic
Winnipeg Regional Health Authority ‒ click here
Shared Health ‒ click here
Ontario
Ontario Health ‒ surgery, diagnostic, cardiac surgery, cardiac procedures
Quebec
University of Montreal (CHUM) ‒ click here
CIUSSS Capitale Nationale ‒ click here
CIUSSS du Nord-de-l’ile-de-Montreal ‒ click here
CISSS Bas St. Laurent ‒ click here
Quebec Heart and Lung Institute at Laval University ‒ click here
CISSS South Centre Montreal Island ‒ click here
CISSS Chaudiere-Applaches ‒ click here
CISSS Outaouais ‒ click here
CISSS Abitibi-Temiscamingue ‒ click here
CISSS Laurentides ‒ click here
CIUSSS East Montreal ‒ click here
CISSS Monteregie-Centre ‒ click here
CISSS Monteregie-Est ‒ click here
CIUSSS Estrie-Centre Sherbrooke ‒ click here
CHU de Quebec, Universite Laval ‒ click here
New Brunswick
New Brunswick Health ‒ click here
Horizon Health Network ‒ click here
Nova Scotia
Nova Scotia Health Authority ‒ surgery, diagnostic
Newfoundland and Labrador
Newfoundland and Labrador Health Services ‒ click here
Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island Health ‒ surgery, diagnostic