NOUVELLES
❙❙❙Pulse
Damaged lungs. A
dissected brain. A
Canada ranks near top in health hacking smoker.
spending: OECD It’s enough to
make anyone quit.
That’s what Health Canada is hoping with its new
Data released last year indicate that Canada tied for fourth graphic health warnings that began appearing on ciga-
among 27 members of the Organization for Economic Co- rette packs Jan. 1, 2001 (www.infotobacco.com). Canada
operation and Development (OECD) in 1998 in terms of is the first country to implement such strong labelling
health spending as a measures. The new Canadian Tobacco Use Monitoring
percentage of the coun- Survey indicates that 6 million Canadians smoke —
Per capita health expenditures* try’s gross domestic
G-7 countries only about 25% of the population aged 15 and older. Smok-
product (GDP). The ing by teens aged 15–19 appears to have plateaued at
4500
United States devoted about 28% of that population.
4000
3500 the highest percentage
3000 of GDP to health
2500 (13.6%), followed by
US$
2000
1500
Germany (10.6%) and
Switzerland (10.4%).
Asbestos manufacturers dodge
1000
500 Canada was tied with litigation
0 France at 9.5% of GDP
n
ce
da
Companies that are otherwise financially fit are declaring
y
ly
Canada’s relative posi-
S
K
pa
an
U
U
Ita
an
na
Ja
m
Fr
Ca
bankruptcy in a bid to escape endless asbestos-related litiga-
er
tion and spending level
G
* Figures in US dollars purchasing power parity have been steady for tion (pages 489, 491, 495). Twenty-five of the 140 businesses
several years. that once sold asbestos products in the US have already filed
Canada also placed for bankruptcy, the Wall Street Journal reported in December.
fifth in per-capita spending on health, behind the US, In the US bankruptcy is an expensive proposition, since
Switzerland, Germany and Norway. American law requires companies declaring bankruptcy to
Canada spent $2312 per person on health in 1998 ($US create a “qualified settlement fund” or trust for future
purchasing power parity), compared with $1461 spent in the claimants. This generally amounts to at least 51% of the
United Kingdom. Per-capita spending in the US, at $4178, company’s net worth. Financial claims made in lawsuits can
more than doubled that of Australia, $2036. be debilitating. For example, Owens Corning settled 240 000
When public spending as a percentage of total health ex- asbestos-related claims for $1.7 billion before it filed for
penditures is considered, Canada fell to 18th position. The bankruptcy protection.
OECD data show that 69.6% of total spending was financed Closer to home, members of Parliament are moving out of
by the public purse in 1998, although recent statistics from the Wellington Building on Parliament Hill in Ottawa after
the Canadian Institute for Health Information indicate that an environmental assessment in November revealed that there
this percentage is increasing and is estimated to stand at were large amounts of asbestos dust in ventilation ducts, stair-
70.4% in 2000. — Lynda Buske, buskel@cma.ca wells and elsewhere. — Barbara Sibbald, CMAJ
Private PET-scanning clinic opens in Vancouver
The first private positron-emission to- end. The scans are used to diagnose dis- costs about $6 million. Operating costs
mography (PET) scanning clinic in eases such as cancer and to conduct for the cyclotron are about $1.5 million
Canada offering full-body scans is open brain-related research. There are cur- annually.
for business in Vancouver. The rently 5 of the machines in Canada. Sutcliffe says the PET scanner is par-
PETscan Centre, located on the cam- “We could soon [surpass] the abilities ticularly useful in diagnosing certain
pus of the University of British Colum- of 1 scanner,” says Dr. Simon Sutcliffe, types of cancer, particularly cancer of
bia, is owned by International PET Di- CEO of the BC Cancer Agency (BCCA). the lung, breast and colon, as well as
agnostics Inc., a BC company led by The opening of the private facility lymphoma. The main advantage of the
architect Denis Tusar. It is currently follows unsuccessful attempts by the machines is their superior imaging clar-
open 2 days per week and charges BCCA and Vancouver Hospital to con- ity. Sutcliffe says PET scanners will al-
$2500 per scan. It has an annual capac- vince the province to fund a public cen- most certainly replace some other types
ity of 2000 patient scans, and the own- tre. The PET scanner plus the cyclotron of investigation currently used in the
ers expect it will be operating at full ca- unit to manufacture the radioactive management of cancer patients. —
pacity — 5 days per week — by year’s compound needed to produce the scan Heather Kent, Vancouver
532 JAMC • 20 FÉVR. 2001; 164 (4)